Poolhall Junkies (3 Stars)

I bought this film on the recommendation of Tom Welling. In the podcast "Precipice" he said it was one of his favourite movies, so I had to see what it's about.

Johnny is a 15-year-old boy who's been abandoned by his parents. He's taken in by a poolhall owner called Joe, who recognises that Johnny has a natural talent for playing pool. Joe sets Johnny up as a pool hustler, playing games for high stakes against local drug dealers. It's not just about pool, as Joe tells Johnny. Anyone can win at pool, but Johnny can insult the players to their face, take their money and they still like him. That's charisma.

Johnny's dream is to become a professional pool player. Talent scouts spot him and send him invitations to tournaments, but Joe intercepts and destroys the letters. Johnny is his cash cow, and he doesn't want him to leave.

Fast forward 15 years. His girlfriend Tara, who works in a legal company, puts him under pressure to give up pool hustling and find a real job. He gets a job on a construction site, but he fails miserably. The only thing he's good at is playing pool. He no longer plays for Joe, but he spends time playing pool behind her back.

At a party in Tara's company, Johnny meets a millionaire businessman called Mike, played by Christopher Walken. Johnny immediately recognises that he's a pool player from the crease in his trousers. Interesting. Is it that obvious? And does Johnny look at the trousers of every man he meets at parties? Mike introduces Johnny to Tara's boss, who's playing pool upstairs in the executive suite. After seeing him play a game, Mike is convinced in Johnny's skills and bankrolls him in a high stakes game. Johnny plays against Tara's boss. If the boss wins, he gets Mike's Mercedes. If Johnny wins, Tara will be given a 12-month contract as a full lawyer. Johnny wins, of course. Tara doesn't know the reason for her promotion, but she's angry when she finds out that Johnny's been playing pool with her boss.

I shan't give any more spoilers, except to say that "Poolhall Junkies" follows the typical rules of sports films:

      1. Someone is an expert player.

      2. He suffers setbacks.

      3. He finally wins a big game.

So the plot is predictable? Yes, but who cares?

The film was mentioned in "Precipice" as the film in which Michael Rosenbaum and Anson Mount met one another. They've been friends ever since. Michael plays Johnny's younger brother Danny who wants to follow in his footsteps as a pool hustler, but doesn't have the talent.

He should stick to singing. If you like that sort of thing. Danny's band is playing in an almost empty room. Not that the number of listeners means anything. I've been at excellent performances of Mike Burney, when he was playing in pubs with hardly anyone paying attention to the music. I clapped the loudest every time, and I bought him a beer afterwards. I miss him.

Anson Mount plays Chris, one of Johnny's closest friends. I didn't recognise him at first. He looks different with glasses.

One thing I have to praise about the film is that there's remarkably little smoking, considering the environment. In an early scene Johnny pulls a cigarette out of Danny's mouth and tells him to stop smoking. That's the only cigarette we see in the whole movie. Maybe critics will complain that the lack of smoking in poolhalls is unrealistic, but it doesn't spoil the film at all.

I feel guilty for giving the film a low rating. I'm not saying it's a bad film, but it doesn't speak to me. I don't like sports films, so I'll give it a Heater. I wonder what rose'n'bomb rating it would get from  Michael Rosenbaum and Tom Welling.

Success Rate:  - 7.1