Casino Jack - DVD

Film: Jack Abramoff (Kevin Spacey) is in a real pickle. For years, the successful lobbyist has represented his clients' interests against all forms of opposition. Although he made a name for himself with it and also earned good money, it was just not enough for him anymore. And so he wanted to treat himself to a piece of the pie for once. Together with his partner Michael Scanlon (Barry Pepper) Abramoff prepares a big coup around a fleet of casino ships. Actually, everything goes well, but the two lobbyists have not reckoned with the rage of a cuckolded girlfriend (Rachelle Lefrevre), the egotism of a businessman (Jon Lovitz) and the unscrupulous actions of the Greek fleet owner (Daniel Kash). And soon the carefully built house of cards begins to totter. And that's not all: other shady deals Abramoff has been involved in over the years now threaten to be his undoing...

Casino Jack is based on the scandals surrounding Jack Abramoff, which were revealed during two court cases in 2006 and caused quite a stir, and not just in the US. Fraud, conspiracy, tax evasion, bribery, the list of charges against the powerful lobbyist grew longer and longer and eventually earned Abramoff a sentence of six years in prison. By December 2010, however, he had already been released and was working as a pizza maker in Baltimore after that. Director George Hickenlooper, who passed away just days before the film's scheduled U.S. release, turned the events leading up to Abramoff's conviction into a satirical comedy in his final directorial effort, which scores big with lead actor Kevin Spacey.

Spacey, who was rewarded with a Golden Globe nomination for his role, gives the Hollywood-loving lobbyist (Abramoff dabbled as a film producer in the late 1980s and is credited as such for the Dolph Lundgren films Red Scorpion 1 <.x>Ampersand</x> 2) with an infectiously good-humored arrogance through which ice-cold calculation repeatedly breaks. Especially when Abramoff is constantly imitating actors of some sort, Spacey seems fully in his element. Here it is definitely worth switching over to the original English version, because the imitations are just wonderful.

Also the other actors of the great ensemble do their thing really well, even if they are played a bit in the shade by Spacey again and again. On the basis of the good actors and the really interesting story it would have been very nice if the script had turned out a bit more biting and thus had done justice to the high ambitions with which especially the actors obviously approached the matter. As it is, however, the action is often presented far too innocuously, resulting in some plodding lengths, especially in the second half.

In the end, this means that Casino Jack, despite its high potential and many good aspects, cannot compete on balance with other political satires like Wag the Dog. Worth seeing is the film but due to the incredible true background and the performance of Kevin Spacey but always!

Picture + Sound: Technically, the implementation of the film is on a good level. The clean image is pleasantly sharp overall, with only some details looking a little washed out in darker moments. The colors are mixed neatly, could have here and there, however, like a little stronger to come into its own. The sound is also unspectacular, which is not surprising for a dialogue-heavy satire. Dialogues and music come but well coordinated from the boxes, which is why there is still a good here.

Extras: The bonus material has turned out a bit meager. In addition to the trailer in German and English, there are about 8 minutes of outtakes and nine minutes of removed, still unfinished scenes to see, where it becomes clear how much scenes were shot in front of a green screen. Unfortunately, there are no subtitles to the outtakes and cut scenes, so only viewers with a good command of English will be able to enjoy these bonuses.

Conclusion: Casino Jack is an amusing political satire that deals with the Abramoff scandal, which has also made headlines outside the US, in a somewhat over-the-top but very entertaining way. Thanks to Kevin Spacey's great performance, which was rewarded with a Golden Globe nomination, the film remains worth watching even in its dramaturgically weaker moments. The DVD of the film is technically well done, only the bonus material is a bit meager. Some information about the actual background would have been very desirable. Nevertheless: if you like well-acted political satires in the style of Wag the Dog, you can risk a look here. Recommendable

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp