People are voting emotionally.

Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

William H.Macy stars as a loser in a traditional casino world run by mobsters in this romantic drama by writer/director Wayne Kramer entitled The Cooler.Maria Bello and Alec Baldwin co-star in this romantic drama that tells a story of a "cooler" who owes thousands to the casino he is working for.Bernie Lootz has been extremely unlucky as a gambler.He owes a lot of money to Shangri-La casino more than $100,000.He gets hired as a "cooler",a person assigned to gamble next to high rollers and offer them some bad luck.This works off for awhile until Bernie has almost paid off his debt. Then he meets cocktail waitress Natalie Belisario.Bernie and Natalie falls in love and the former's luck starts to change as he becomes extremely lucky to the consternation of his boss,Shelly Kaplow.As these things are going on, Larry Sokolov arrives to the scene to make some management changes on how the casino business is run with corporations coming into the picture.No question that the screenplay could be considered trite and clichéd.But what makes it good is the fact that the actors and actresses are given room to work for in the portrayal of the characters that the viewers are treated with good entertainment.Macy,Bello and Baldwin provided great performances as we get to notice their characters more than the familiar screenplay.Added to that,we are also given a glimpse of how the casino business was run when mobsters were at rule as compared to the changes made by the corporations.Overall,it was a good movie due to the great portrayal of the main characters despite the familiar theme.

Alec Baldwin and Maria Bello were RIGHTFULLY nominated for several awards, but unfortunately did not win many..What surprised me most was that William H.Macy was not even nominated for a single award, although I feel he has given an excellent performance in the tile role of "The Cooler"The movie has a good pace and is not dull for a minute.Excitement and anticipation are combined in the right proportion..The direction is smooth.. The movie should have done better at the box-office..Performances are truly worth watching.

This movie is sort of like a train wreck. You have to watch it but you really don't want to. The acting is far from wonderful. Macy is just not believable in this part. Bello is beautiful and probably does the best acting job, but the character just isn't believable either. Baldwin plays all the cliché's you could think of as the Casino manager. In fact the entire movie is one big cliché on the Vegas experience.BUT...I really like the movie. I've actually watched it several times. So, in spite of Macy's pasty butt, Baldwin's terrible attempt at a gangster accent and Maria Bello's character's improbable attraction to Macy's, the story is entertaining enough to make the movie worth watching. Oh, and Ellen Green's cameo role as the coffee waitress is a hoot. Not a "must see" movie, but one I think you can enjoy on an otherwise slow night.

Wayne Kramer has made remarkable cinema in 'The Cooler'. 'The Cooler' is about a 'Cooler' and his twisted life. It's film that grows on you, it's a film that succeeds in it's mission. Remarkable Direction by Kramer is the mainstay of this 'COOL' film.'The Cooler' is one of those rare films, that have a terrific start, a terrific middle and a terrific end as well. Sure it does few it's share of minuses, but at the end of the day, it's an exceptional film.Coming right away to the acting department, Alec Baldwin is fantastic in a supporting role. William H. Macy essays a very difficult part with remarkable ease and understanding! He's a great actor, hope he gets his due soon. Maria Bello looks stunning as usual and delivers a terrific performance from start to end. Shawn Hatosy and Estella Warren are passable.I just loved 'The Cooler'... so from my side, Two Thumbs Up!