21 (2008)

User Review

• 

  BarneyNuttall

  7 / 10

  21 is fun, at times tense, high school/crime drama which succumbs to high school tropes and a muddled message. If only a shot of maturity was injected, we could have a Vegas Baby Driver film. Alas, it never reaches that level but its 'twist-turn-turn' ending, along with some flashy camerawork, makes for a surprisingly fun movie.
  
  The film begins as two separate beings, each assigned to their respective setting; MIT or Vegas. While the MIT part is predictable and cliched, the Vegas section is snappy and sharp. I have to admit, I'm a sucker for a Vegas movie but this was truly enjoyable. The film then follows a textbook fallen hero arc in the second half of the film. It's a story we've heard a thousand times. Yet, it remained compelling and enjoyable, due to all the secret hand signals and cue words. While the film ends explosively with a kinetic chase scene, it tries to force a message which becomes muddled in the mayhem.

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