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Two for the Money
Universal Pictures


3.8

based on 29 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 27 votes
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FILM:

MPAA RATING: R for pervasive language, a scene of sexuality and a violent act

Starring Al Pacino, Matthew McConaughey, Rene Russo, Armand Assante, Jeremy Piven, Jaime King, Kevin Chapman, and Ralph Garman

Two For the Money is a drama of high stakes set in the adrenalized world of wheeler-dealers whose fortunes are won and lost betting on sports. Matthew McConaughey stars as Brandon Lang, a former college football star whose uncanny ability to predict the outcome of a makes him a prime candidate for recruitment by Walter Abrams (Pacino), the head of one of the biggest sports consulting operations in the country. (Universal)

GENRE(S):	Drama \| Suspense/Thriller
WRITTEN BY:	Dan Gilroy
DIRECTED BY:	D.J. Caruso
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: January 17, 2006 Video: January 17, 2006 Theatrical: October 7, 2005
RUNNING TIME:	122 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

In D.J. Caruso's Two for the Money, you can see Al Pacino doing something he's done a lot lately: Having a terrific time being an actor.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

Too long by about 20 minutes, and takes itself too seriously near the end. But if you're looking for a movie for a boys' night out, it's a winner.

San Francisco Chronicle G. Allen Johnson

Big, loud, glossy and entertaining.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

For all its swaggering bravado, Pacino's turn in Two For The Money is the reverse image of his "Devil's Advocate" character: Instead of the omniscient, all-powerful operator he presents himself as, he's a gambler grasping at a lifestyle that's always just beyond his means.

Portland Oregonian M. E. Russell

While it's focused on the people -- on men who never had mentors struggling to mentor themselves and each other -- the movie works as a smart B film.

Premiere Peter Debruge

Over the years, Pacino's Method has become his madness, and now, whether he's playing Shylock or Satan, he doesn't become the part so much as the part becomes him.

New York Post Kyle Smith

A sloppy and ridiculous movie that Pacino makes oddly entertaining.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

Marginally worth seeing if you're a Pacino fan but, even then, waiting for the DVD is the smart bet.

Chicago Tribune Robert K. Elder

It's a compelling drama, if only a little hollow. For my money, Pacino's bark is ultimately better than Two For the Money's bite.

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

It says in the beginning of the film that Two for the Money is "inspired by a true story." Problem is, it's just not that inspired.

USA Today Mike Clark

McConaughey will never be an actor who lets you into his soul, but he's credible as a good ole boy.

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

Silly but enjoyable drama.

Film Threat Rick Kisonak

Has its rollicking moments and snappy lines but even Pacino can't elevate them into more than a fleetingly juicy treat. This is a movie that desperately wishes it had been written by David Mamet.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

It never quite adds up to anything. It's engaging enough while it's going on, but has little visceral impact or resonance.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Sports betting is a great subject for a movie, but Two for the Money is short on the number-crunching nitty-gritty.

LA Weekly James C. Taylor

Dramatic failings are only exacerbated by D.J. Caruso's direction: He composes every frame as if for television -- despite the fact that the film is shot in widescreen -- and his visual style is about as cinematic as sports talk radio.

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

A muddled melodrama about the shady and questionable though not quite illegal world of "sports advisers."

Variety Brian Lowry

Despite nice touches, pic meanders in the middle and ends flatly.

The New York Times Manohla Dargis

A confusion of tones, intentions and allusions, Two for the Money lurches from upbeat to downbeat without ever settling into a coherent groove.

Los Angeles Times Carina Chocano

Pure, unself-conscious macho camp, but it's not like Pacino and McConaughey don't know it. They're pitching tents and romping around in the grass like Jerry Maguire on steroids.

Boston Globe Wesley Morris

It's as if a version of Oliver Stone's movie has been frozen in some fraternity house beer cooler since 1987 and thawed for the age of plasma screen TVs.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

Pacino is a one-man three-ring circus, blustering, capering, cursing, raging and weaseling his way through this predictable morality play like a trickster Satan on speed.

Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach

If you expect anything more substantive from a movie - characters of more than one dimension, storylines that at the least play new riffs on old themes, plot developments that flow from the narrative - you'd best look elsewhere.

Empire Simon Braund

A preposterous, steroidal mess.

Village Voice Ben Kenigsberg

In keeping with his apparent ambition to play each character more berserk than the last, Pacino can't discuss wine choice without sounding on the brink of aneurysm.

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

The direction by Caruso adds little to the dynamics, although the script by Dan Gilroy offers the occasional gem. Nevertheless, Two for the Money is hardly a cineplex bargain.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen

Falls somewhere on that aesthetic scale between mediocre and flat-out bad.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

The fight between good and evil feels fixed in favor of Hollywood redemption.

Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez

Two for the Money, which was written by Dan Gilroy (Freejack, Chasers), is so badly constructed and illogical that its inanities manage to drown the actor (Pacino) out.

The average user rating for this movie is 3.8 (out of 10) based on 27 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Mike D. gave it a3:
Ridiculous script. Pacino is always interesting to watch but he is over the top most of the time in this movie.

Rich R. gave it a1:
This is a foul movie. Why doesn't this has-been branch out a little bit instead of playing the same old dispeptic psycho in every movie, again and again, time after time... And Matthew Mc-whatever-it-is? Don't get me started! What a log! This guy's the Patrick Swayze of his generation: dull, non-threatening, over-exercised and dumb. I guess I should say "What a dog!" No wonder women like guys like these; they make them feel superior.

BJ S. gave it a6:
Definetely not as bad as these negative reviews. I personally I found it entertaining but I was not expecting a great movie.

Mark B. gave it a7:
There are entire decades that didn't produce as many sports-themed or -related movies as 2005 has released--and the year isn't even over yet! In addition to films about the usual suspects: baseball, football, basketball, soccer, boxing, golf and horse racing, we've gotten (or will soon get) fictional or factual screen treatments of such off-the-beaten-track athletic and competitive endeavors as high school ice skating, junior high competitive ballroom dancing, wheelchair rugby and the Special Olympics! So what's next? Well, how about BETTING on sports? Two for the Money (terrible, genetic title, by the way: it could just as easily have been attached to a 1935 Busby Berkeley musical or a 1949 Dead End Kids comedy) is the latest variation on the venerable, all-purpose seasoned-expert-teaches-green-but-eager-kid-the-ropes subgenre, in which injured, woulda-been pro footballer Matthew McConaughey learns all about becoming a guru of gridiron gambling from tycoon Al Pacino...and before the movie's over, you just know that both guys will learn as much or more about themselves as well. This joins A Sound of Thunder and Waiting...as one of 2005's prime guilty pleasures: very few points for originality, but plenty for sheer chutzpah: it's hard not to respond to the absurd but weirdly entertaining sequences in which Pacino and McConaughey crash a Gamblers Anonymous meeting hoping to, uh, cause a relapse; or where a disgruntled mobster (Armand Assante) finds an especially pungent way to express his displeasure at McConaughey's less than 100% dependable advice, or the operatic cross-cutting finale that both incorporates Big Game cliches and rejects them. It's bombastic and way over the top, but let's be honest: isn't that what you WANT more than half the time from an Al Pacino movie? He can be a wonderfully subtle, understated actor, but the Godfather trilogy notwithstanding, don't most of us go to Scent of a Woman or ...And Justice for all or Devil's Advocate to hear loud, grandstanding speechifying, which Pacino provides here in abundance? (I mean, you don't see a whole generation and culture sporting T-shirts depicting his characters in Donnie Brasco and The Merchant of Venice, do you?) The likable McConaughey manages the daunting task of keeping up with Pacino most of the time, but even better (and a smashing counterpoint) is Rene Russo, who as Pacino's conflicted wife repeats what she did so well in the Pierce Brosnan remake of The Thomas Crown Affair: strikes a blow for fortysomething actresses as incredibly attractive, alluring, sexual beings in an industry that too often pushes actresses that reach a certain point of no return into unflattering supporting roles, repeatedly unsuccessful TV sitcoms and, eventually (gasp!) infomercials while Harrison Ford and Sean Connery will continue to get romantic leads until they can no longer move their walkers. Then again, since Russo apparently had to executive produce this movie in order to guarantee herself this role, I guess it's not as much a cause for celebration as I originally thought!

Chad S. gave it a6:
"Two for the Money" lost me when the film seems to forget that Walter(Al Pacino) turns on Brandon(Matthew McConaughey) at an office party. That flash of anger would seem to suggest a violent side, not a fatalistic one. We never see that malevolent side again. A seasoned pro like Walter would probably never allow his personal feelings to hijack his business sense. Since Brandon is never allowed to go, say 8-8; he's either super-hot or super-cold, it's hard to imagine how this sports-advising group could stay in business after two weeks of brutal forecasting. The early scenes in "Two for the Money" raises our expectations because we think the film is going to be knowledgable about the world of sports handicapping. What we get instead is a variation of the sports movie finale, an annoying gaming metaphor to describe Walter's relationship with Toni(Rene Russo), and some amusing affirmations of how we think these pigskin gasbags arrive at their picks. This last item is the best reason to see "Two for the Money".

ed w. gave it a7:
Hey, relax. It is a good time, not perfect but Pacino is a lot of fun to watch in this role.

Lindsey gave it a0:
My boyfriend dragged me to this trash. AWFUL is an understatement.

Two for the Money Universal Pictures

Two for the Money
Universal Pictures