A straightforward film about a gambling addict, Dan Mahowny, beautifully played by Philip Seymour Hoffman. Yet, as good as Hoffman is in the film, saying that he gives a great performance is like saying the ice in my freezer is cold. Philip Seymour Hoffman always gives a great performance. So what else does Owning Mahowny have to offer? Well, there are several other good performances. Minnie Driver dresses down to play a Canadian bank teller from the early 1980s. She is quite good, but it's not an especially interesting role and I have to wonder why she would uglify herself with that awful hairdo for a movie that focuses almost entirely on the lead. If she was looking to win awards, she came to the wrong place. Maury Chaykin, one of my favorite Canadian character actors, is very good as Mahowny's bookie. I also liked Chris Collins, who plays a young man in Atlantic City who begins as a nobody working for Mahowny's favorite casino. When Mahowny shows a fondness for the kid, his boss pulls him up in the world and has him become the gambler's personal assistant. The manager of the casino is played by John Hurt. I don't know if I like him. He seems so evil at times I expected him to tap his fingers together and exclaim `Excellent' in a Mr. Burns voice. The most interesting part of the film, outside of Hoffman's performance, is the way Hurt is portrayed as Mahowny's shadow. When Mahowny is losing, Hurt is winning, and vice versa. He's as addicted to Mahowny's gambling as much as Mahowny. Other than that, the film offers few if any insights. See it for Hoffman's performance if you're a fan. Or just catch any of his other pictures. He's good in everything. 7/10.
Review of Owning Mahowny
Owning Mahowny
(2003)
Philip Seymour Hoffman is great, but the film is kind of a bore
27 December 2003