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21 (2008)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
28 March 2008 (USA) moreTagline:
Inspired by the true story of five students who changed the game forever. morePlot:
"21" is the fact-based story about six MIT students who were trained to become experts in card counting and subsequently took Vegas casinos for millions in winnings. full summary | full synopsisAwards:
1 win & 4 nominations moreNewsDesk:
(4 articles)
21 Is No. 1 (From Studio Briefing. 31 July 2008, 10:38 AM, PDT)
Spacey Denies 'Diva' Claims (From WENN. 22 June 2008, 7:06 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner moreCast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Jim Sturgess | ... | Ben Campbell |
 | Kevin Spacey | ... | Prof. Micky Rosa |
 | Kate Bosworth | ... | Jill Taylor |
 | Aaron Yoo | ... | Choi |
 | Liza Lapira | ... | Kianna |
 | Jacob Pitts | ... | Jimmy Fisher |
 | Laurence Fishburne | ... | Cole Williams |
 | Jack McGee | ... | Terry |
 | Josh Gad | ... | Miles Connoly |
 | Sam Golzari | ... | Cam |
| Helen Carey | ... | Ellen Campbell |
| Jack Gilpin | ... | Bob Phillips |
| Donna Lows | ... | Planet Hollywood Dealer #1 |
| Butch Williams | ... | Planet Hollywood Dealer #2 |
| Jeffrey Ma | ... | Planet Hollywood Dealer Jeff |
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Additional Details
MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for some violence, and sexual content including partial nudity.Parents Guide:
View content advisory for parentsRuntime:
123 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 moreCertification:
Australia:M | Finland:K-13 | Netherlands:12 | South Korea:15 | Ireland:12A | Sweden:11 | UK:12A | Canada:14A (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Canada:G (Québec) | New Zealand:M | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia) | USA:PG-13 (certificate #43290) | Iceland:12 | Germany:12 | South Africa:13V | Singapore:PG | Poland:15 | Brazil:14 | Italy:T | Greece:K-13 | Argentina:13 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Hong Kong:IIB | Taiwan:PG-12 | Malaysia:UMOVIEmeter: 
10% since last week
why?
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Boston University students were used as extras in many of the classroom scenes. moreGoofs:
Continuity: When Ben is riding his bike on the bridge, a young guy with a lady are passing in the back stage. After this, when a yellow stripped bus passed behind Ben, that young guy and lady disappeared (it seems, they jumped into water) then another lady in white jacket appears who was absent before in the back stage. moreQuotes:
Jill Taylor: [in Foxx Strip Club] So do you want a private dance?Ben Campbell: How much?
Jill Taylor: 20 a song, 30 song minimum.
Ben Campbell: I don't know. Sounds expensive.
[they kiss]
more
Soundtrack:
L.S.F (Lost Souls Forever) moreFAQ
Did Ben really start playing blackjack to help pay for college?Why did Ben hide money in his ceiling? Why not use a bank?
Did a security company from Las Vegas really tail them all over the country?
more
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There are many stories about success based on hard-work and perseverance. There have also been many stories about success based on crime and abandonment of the law. Both of these scenarios can make for great movies -- but when a movie like 21 comes out, it's both great AND fresh. 21 is a movie about success based on locking in on a hole in the system, and exploiting it.
Card counting is legal, and anyone able to do so can take the house's edge away in a game of blackjack. That is the basic premise of 21: A team of intelligent students at MIT structure a team to make vast amounts of money at the blackjack table. They have everything down pat, from the counting to the signals to alert of suspicious casino workers (because if you can believe it, casinos don't like to lose money in such high amounts.) The movie portrays the situation stylishly, perfectly blending in montages and effective music when necessary. Add in some Hollywood "embellishment" such as a particularly harsh head of security (Laurence Fishburne), and you have the making of a good movie on your hands.
It is disappointing that the production team felt the need to re-assign the races of the actual MIT Team (of which the majority was Asian), but that's more of an issue of ethics and sociology. Don't let it ruin a perfectly good movie. Aside from this blunder, 21 is an excellent film.