I’ve talked to quite a few people about this Argento flick simply known as THE CARD PLAYER, and a lot of people have said they didn’t care much for it. I tend to disagree. Although I don’t think it’s the best film ever made as someone who does get bored watching the majority of giallo flicks. I for one found THE CARD PLAYER a very easy film to follow with a simple and effective plot.
THE CARD PLAYER has a very simple plot. It’s about a killer simply known as THE CARD PLAYER who kidnaps young women in Rome and though a webcam puts their lives up for bid on an internet poker site, where a player can challenge him and try to save the girls life by winning. A British policeman John Brennan (Liam Cunningham) teams up with Italian Detective Anna Mari (Stefania Rocca) when a British girl becomes the victim of the killer. Together they must solve the crime and track down the killer using the internet to bring the killer to justice.
The script for THE CARD PLAYER did have that feel that every American crime/serial killer movie has. A simple plot where two detectives try to track down a smart killer who eludes their every move, and so on. It does not have the pacing or effect say like a film like SE7EN or COPY CAT does, but the story still works. It may be repetitive at times, and the character development does take a back seat to the story. But overall it’s not that bad of a script.
The acting and overall production value is decent. I’m not going to say it was all great, because there were things within the film that I noticed that did seem a bit unreal, but overall everything was all right. The scenes that take place in the police station where a group of police are surrounding the computer as they attempt to beat the killer in a game of poker. If you look at the actors faces as each game is played in the film, as actors they didn’t really play the role of concerned cops, who know that they must win or the girl on the other end is dead. I even thought some of the actors expressions seemed comical as if they were going to start laughing. The production values had it’s issues, mainly with lighting, but overall was pretty good.
Overall, I enjoyed THE CARD PLAYER for what it was, a simple serial killer movie. It was nothing great, but it served it’s role and told a simple story of an internet card player who liked to bet the lives of the young women he kidnapped. The film has a shocking conclusion, but is nothing to over the top or predictable. Don’t expect over the top special make-up effects with each scene either as Argento does keep the film on a less is more scale for the most part. THE CARD PLAYER is a film that you won’t mind watching when there is nothing else to do, and when your in the mood for a good suspense story, where you have to play a game of clue and figure out who the killer is. Overall, it’s not a bad film, but it’s nothing special either. I for one liked it for what it was worth and had a good time watching it.
– Horror Bob
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- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
