Stylish and Surreal ‘Ballad of a Small Player’ is Not a Good Gamble  

Stylish and Surreal ‘Ballad of a Small Player’ is Not a Good Gamble  

By Lynn Venhaus
Stylish but slow and shallow, “Ballad of a Small Player” is an underdeveloped and overproduced drama that drowns in its own pretentions.

Despite its visual splendor, the storytelling is scattered and too surreal to sustain interest. A mystifying misfire from director Edward Berger, it’s disappointing because his two previous films were Oscar nominees for Best Picture – the international winning feature “All Quiet on the Western Front” in 2023 and “Conclave” in 2024. He knows how to frame a narrative – the conundrum is do we want to spend nearly101 minutes on this one?

Colin Farrell plays an addict, liar, thief and fraud masquerading as a high roller with a fake aristocrat name, Lord Doyle, hiding out in the opulent gambling mecca Macau, and trying to score. He plays baccarat wearing a lucky pair of leather gloves.

Doyle is really Reilly, and he is wanted for swindling an old rich woman out of her life savings. He is trying to escape his past, but with self-destructive tendencies, he makes reckless decisions and is spiraling on his way to rock bottom.

Sweating profusely, a portrait of desperation, he’s also a ticking time bomb with heart issues — drinks too much, eats too extravagantly and smokes (even when he’s having chest pains). He continues to live large while the wolves are at the door. Why not give us a reason to care if he can put his life back together?

Somehow, he is given grace by a casino floor manager, Dao Ming, who turns out to be an angel of mercy. As delicately played by Fala Chen, she’s a mysterious, kindred spirit who recognizes a fellow lost soul. (Does this remind anyone of “Leaving Las Vegas”?)

Dao Ming explains The Festival of the Hungry Ghost in Hong Kong, and screenwriter Rowan Joffe ties his streak of good fortune to a ghost story. This mystical turn adds another bizarre twist. Is it instead a dance with the devil?

The plot thickens — or rather falters. Joffe’s script, adapted from a 2014 novel by Lawrence Osborne, has too many unexplained occurrences. He seems to rationalize it to luck or wizardry, messing with dream-like with time and place. And do we really need another gambler’s one-last-time trope? Yawn.

Joffe has danced around spiritual, moral and philosophical entry points that are merely teases. Brief nods to the seven deadly sins appear but are not satisfyingly threaded to make an impact.

Farrell has become one to watch, especially after his tour de force as Oswald “Oz” Cobble in the HBO mini-series “The Penguin” (and the movie “The Batman”), as well as his superb Oscar-nominated turn in “The Banshees of Inisherin.” He’s accomplished at playing a smooth talker at the end of his rope, and this performance is intense.

While he has played likeable scalawags before, he has been more appealing as a rude hitman in “In Bruges” and as a gangster coach in “The Gentlemen,” because this wheeler-dealer is pathetic.

In an obscure, shadowy role, the always aces Tilda Swinton plays yet another quirky character in her canon of peculiar portrayals. She is Cynthia Blithe, a debt collector hot on Reilly’s tail, but he calls her Betty. (If you haven’t checked out by the time the credits’ roll, there is a strange dance she and Farrell do. Just because, I suppose.)

Alex Jennings coyly plays Adrian Lippett, a cryptic figure who owes Reilly money, and is always looking for a deal himself.

The enigmatic storytelling takes a back seat to the striking colorful aesthetic. Macau, a former Portuguese colony that’s a special region of the Republic of China, is a glitzy, glamorous neon-drenched adult playground that is luxuriously packaged, in James Field’s cinematography and Jonathan Houlding’s production design.

They are so meticulous in beautiful textures, it seemed like a nod to Wes Anderson’s visual style. Friend won an Oscar for his work on “All Quiet on the Western Front,” and he dazzles again.

Ultimately a letdown, “Ballad of a Small Player” doesn’t pay off, despite skilled artisans at work. In the words of Notorious B.I.G.: “Mo Money, Mo Problems.”

“Ballad of a Small Player” is a 2025 drama directed by Edward Berger and starring Colin Farrell, Tilda Swinton, Fala Chen and Alex Jennings. It is rate R for language and suicide, and its runtime is 1 hour, 41 minutes. It is currently in theaters and streaming on Netflix beginning Oct. 29. Lynn’s Grade: C-.

Marvel’s ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ Spotlights Asian Star

Marvel’s ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ Spotlights Asian Star

By Lynn Venhaus
Now in Phase 4, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has given their “Master of Kung Fu” comic book hero his own action movie, and this visual effects-martial arts extravaganza has its plusses and minuses.

Shang-Chi is the son of the immortal Wenwu (Tony Leung), who possess the Ten Rings with magical powers that offers immortality to its owner. After vanquishing his enemies, Wenwu searches for the hard-to-find kingdom of Ta Lo and gets more than he bargained for – meeting the love of his life, Li (Fala Chen), who is the fierce guardian.

Fast forward to modern times, and their son, Shang-Chi (Simu Liu), must confront the past he thought he left behind when a mysterious organization draws him into its web.

Let’s hear it for taking a leap into highlighting Asian performers, and the cast overall is a sturdy one. Likable Simu Liu makes for an appealing, yet typical, reluctant hero, while Awkwafina stands out in a slacker-sidekick role, as his best friend Katy.

However, the backstory is dense, for the ancient Chinese mythology goes back more than a thousand years. Besides, Ten Rings is also the name of a nefarious global crime organization that has been referenced in the movie that kicked off the MCU in 2008 –“Iron Man” and its third movie and “The Incredible Hulk.” In addition, other MCU movies “Doctor Strange” and “Avengers: Endgame” have included mentions of characters, too.

If you are familiar with all 24 MCU films and the four television shows now on Disney Plus, you will be at an advantage here, but it’s not a deal-buster. To learn more about how Shang-Chi fits into the bigger MCU picture, be sure to stay for the credits – like we’ve all been trained to do — and a few Avengers will pop into view.

Back to where we pick up the next generation of Asian actors. In present day, dear old dad Wenwu tracks down his two children– son Shang-Chi, now a parking valet in San Francisco who goes by the name Sean, and his sister, Xialing (musical theater actor Meng’er Zhang), who runs an underground fight club populated by hulking beasts and nefarious sorts.

In the first thrilling action set piece, Sean and Katy face off against Dad’s henchmen on a careening out-of-control city bus. Katy, also underemployed parking cars, tags along to Macao, which is on the southern coast of China.

For those of us not familiar with the comic book and unaware that the dad was originally Fu Manchu, we have a lot to wrap our heads around, and mixing the past with the present can get laborious.

As we find our way in an alternate reality and immerse ourselves in an elegant Eastern world, we enter some sort of parallel universe with strange creatures. And lo and behold, there is Ben Kingsley, who played “The Mandarin” but was really a dim British actor named Trevor Slattery in “Iron Man 3.”  

He seems to be poorly used and in the way. But the Oscar winner and esteemed British thespian is amusing. Perhaps he will jog your memory.

Another blast from the past is the appearance of Benedict Wong, the sorcerer in “Doctor Strange,” who makes a few cryptic remarks. Look for him to be back if there is a sequel. And “The Abomination” too.

Director Destin Daniel Cretton is an odd choice to helm a Marvel blockbuster, for he started out in indies, and after his breakthrough “Short Term 12,” with breakout star Brie Larson (now Captain Marvel), directed “The Glass Castle” and “Just Mercy.” However, he is of Asian descent, and was tapped to pull the MCU into the 21st Century of diversity and inclusion, so bravo for that.

The jury is still out on his acumen filming action scenes. He has chosen to bombard us with computer-generated images and very busy visual effects while we sort out who’s who and what’s at stake.

That said, there are some stunning scenes with water and an elegance projected that’s rare for superheroes trying to save the world.

Cretton co-wrote the script with Dave Callaham and Andrew Lanham, and MCU’s penchant for inserting comical interludes happens with wise-cracking Awkwafina – that really is her sole purpose. And she lightens the dark mood considerably.

This is a big film with big themes and a sprawling cast. At times, it feels too much like video game action – beasts fight in flight and these scenes go on way too long. The movie clocks in at 2 hours and 13 minutes.

The family dynamic is intriguing and could have been better served with more character interaction. After all, dad is still an evil terrorist. Sure, he might have veered off-course after his wife died, but what is the deal with him trying to steal the amulets she gave the kids? I sense that dad can’t be trusted.

Casual viewers may prefer to figure out the connections rather than be pummeled with incessant dragon action – and it would be a shame to derail a project that tries hard to move the genre forward leaving behind troublesome Asian stereotypes.

Hopefully, joining Team Shang-Chi will be a fruitful journey.

Tony Leung as Wenwu

“Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings” is an action-adventure fantasy that is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed b y Destin Daniel Cretton, it stars Simu Liu, Awkwafina, Tony Leung, Michelle Yeoh, Ben Kingsley, Benedict Wong, Meng’er Zhang and
Rated: PG-13 for sequences of violence and action, and language, it has a run time of 2 hours and 13 minutes. It was released in theaters only on Sept. 3. Lynn’s Grade: C+