Today’s Prayer Focus

Deal

MPA Rating: PG-13-Rating (MPA) for language, sexual content and brief drug use.
Moral Rating: not reviewed
Moviemaking Quality:
Primary Audience: Teens, Adults
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Length:
Year of Release: 2008
USA Release: April 25, 2008 (limited)
Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
Relevant Issues
Copyright, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Should Christians be involved with lotteries or other forms of gambling? Answer

How can I decide whether a particular activity—such as smoking, gambling, etc.—is wrong? Answer

How do I know what is right from wrong? Answer

Featuring Burt Reynolds, Bret Harrison, Shannon Elizabeth, Jon Thomas, Shannon Allen, John J. Anderson, Michael Arata, Michael Aston, David Barone, James Bearb, Dale Beasley, Tony Bentley, Lawrence P. Beron, Kenny Bordes, Allen Boudreaux, Lyle Brocato, James Brothers, Edward D. Caiado, Allan Castro, DeAnna Charett, Chase Coleman, Corlis Coyne, Carol Dupuy, Charles Durning, Brian Edwards, Antonio Esfandiari, Dustin Hunter Evans, J.D. Evermore, Joe Fontana, Faye Fontenot, Mike Franklin, Courtney Friel, Luis Fuentes, Geraldine Glenn, Douglas M. Griffin, Gary Grubbs, Joe Hachem, Rio Hackford, Jacob Hamil, Jaime San Andres, Deborah R. Jones, Mabel Jones, Phil Laak, John Lambremont Jr., Anna Belle Landreneau, Raymond Lapino, Scott Lazar, Summer Lee, Tony Lewis, Elizabeth Lynch, Maria Mason, Caroline McKinley, Isabelle Mercier, Alita Molina, Chris Moneymaker, Ritchie Montgomery, Linh Naquin, Stephen Occhipinti, Brandon Olive, Karen Penrose, Ellie Perez, Tommy Perna, Greg Raymer, Billy Slaughter, Gary Michael Smith, Diane Spieler, Marcus Stanley, Lee Telle, Karlin Tessier, Vincent Van Patten, Lauren Zelman
Director Gil Cates Jr.
Producer Michael Amato, John J. Anderson, Michael Arata, Steve Austin, Jerry Daigle, Richard Gabai, Nzinga Garvey, Richard Iott, Scott Lazar, Albert J. Salzer, Marc Weinstock
Distributor Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Trademark logo.Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), owned by Amazon® through MGM Holdings, Inc.

“The game is on.”

Here’s what the distributor says about their film: “Set against the world of high stakes poker, DEAL follows the story of TOMMY VINSON (Burt Reynolds), an ex-gambler who quit the game of Texas Hold’em over 30 years ago after missing a family emergency and swearing to his wife, HELEN, ‘never again.’ Tommy tries to be content with his luggage business but while watching a poker tournament on television, he sees someone who reminds him of his younger self, ALEX STILLMAN (Bret Harrison).

Alex is a cocky, hotshot card playing senior at Yale University. He is the best player there. Alex’s parents would like him to go to law school, but Alex only dreams of playing professional poker, like the icons he sees on TV. After winning an on-line event that places him in the televised game, Alex loses early. He’s close to greatness, but what he doesn’t realize yet is that he focuses too much on the cards, and not the players… that’s where Tommy comes in.

Tommy finds Alex and makes a pact with him: he’ll front Alex the high priced entry fees to all the major tournaments if Alex plays the way that Tommy wants him to. Alex resists at first, but after seeing Tommy make some impressive calls while watching a poker game together, Alex changes his mind and they partner.

Alex’s parents are sick about it, and Helen, Tommy’s wife, is concerned that her husband will get sucked back into the game that took him away once before. Tommy promises Helen that this will not happen because he’s not the one playing, Alex is. But after Tommy and Alex have a falling out over a local Las Vegas call girl that Tommy arranged to meet Alex and whom Alex has developed feelings for, things change, and everything is off.

Tommy, who’s now got the appetite back for the game and a hunger to be acknowledged as the best, enters the final tournament of the poker season and ends up facing Alex, his protege, in the finals of the world series of poker. And what happens there, even though only one will be declared champion, leaves them both winners.”

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See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.


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Movie Critics
…Success isn’t in the cards for this plodding poker drama. …
Michael Rechtshaffen, The Hollywood Reporter
…it’s a flop… Reynolds does less than no acting in this role, and he’s still the best thing in ‘Deal.’…
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune
…you start to wonder if co-writer/director Gil Cates Jr. has any interest in poker whatsoever…
Matt Pais, Chicago Tribune
…more discriminating auds may choose to pass. Or fold. …
John Anderson, Variety