BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See

CommentsXp Best movie ever!

Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

Livestonth I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

jfarms1956 Good movie for the less than 30s crowd. Also works for those who like to gamble at cards. I really loved Sylveste Stallone in this. He seems to always be good at what he does. If it were not for him, I probably wouldn't watch it. Melanie Griffith does fine for a supporting role. The movie plot runs a typical and predictable path. The bad guys always get caught. However, the movie does allow you to get into the thoughts and actions of the cast. This is a good movie for a bunch of singles to get together and chomp on popcorn. It provides a night's worth of entertainment, good cast and good acting. I am not real keen on the subject of gambling, but live and let live. After all, movies are there to be entertaining and this one is.

Richard Hawes The first thing that struck me about this movie is the RKO Pictures logo. It's something I associate with some of the classics of cinema, like Citizen Kane (1941), but I'd never seen it on a contemporary film. To see a new, enhanced version of the logo, with the familiar beeps of the radio signal, was quite exciting and raised my expectations for this straight-to-video release. It didn't let me down. A stylish production, overshadowed at the time of its release by the similarly themed, and higher profile, Confidence (2003), Shade was an ambitious production with a great cast, as many modest star names as an independent film could wish for, and 2.35: 1 aspect ratio cinematography. Shade is an ensemble film. Two Irish actors, one up and coming and the other an old school favourite, with proved track records in a string of Hollywood projects, lead this L.A. lensed tale of double crossing card sharks. Jamie Foxx and Thandie Newton add notable support, but it's Melanie Griffith and Sylvester Stallone the stand out the most, the latter casting a tremendous shadow over his co-stars. With the aid of his own personal make-up artist, hair stylist and costumer, Stallone makes his character of "The Dean" stand out from the rest of the cast. His skin pale, his lips a bold red, his hair streaked with grey; Stallone reminds us of a classical style of performance, evoking memories of Cary Grant or Dean Martin. Proving once again why his career has had such longevity. One of the best films of its type, this light-hearted thriller, which owes a clear debt to the classic The Sting (1973), features great performances from all the principles, as well as fun supporting roles for Hal Holbrook, Bo Hopkins, Michael Dorn and B-Real from Cypress Hill. Without wishing to elaborate on the plot, the non- linear narrative requires close attention and the twists never fail to amuse.

sol1218 ***SPOILERS*** Overly over-plotted movie about a trio of of card hustlers trying to get a crack at #1 in the card sharp business the legendary Dean himself Dean Stevens, Sylvester Stallone,by being able to get the mechanic of the group Vernon, Stuart Townsend, to get into a private card game with him.the Dean is considered to be so big and unapproachable in the film that we don't get a chance to see him until the movie is almost half over. In fact were not even sure if he exists or not up until then even though his name and exploits are brought up by everyone in the movie until he finally makes his grand appearance. It's a lot like a previous movie that one of the stars in the film Gabriel Byrnes, as street hustler Charlie Miller, was in "The Usual Suspects" in regards to the never seen on screen, until he decided to be seen, Kiser Soza.Finally when getting invited to play the Dean at a private room at the L.A Roosevet Hotel the three hustlers Vernon Miller and his on and off girlfriend Tiffany, Thandie Newton, realize that one of the invited guests is Mob Boss Max Maline, Partick Bauchan! The very person who's got a hit out on them for hustling him out of $82,000.00 through one of their greedy and not so bright marks Larry Foxx, Jamie Foxx, at a fake private card game they set Larry up in.***SPOILERS*** Hot and heavy action at the card table with as much as $2,000,000.00 at stake as Vernon goes head to head with the Dean after all the other players were wiped out in the non-stop card turning twisting and sliding action on the poker table. The Dean in fact had the upper hand on Vernon by being able to see, with his eyes unfocused, his hand due to juiced deck he slipped into the game. Yet for some reason the card that he had covered changed for Vernon from a Seven to a Jack without any explanation in the movie's script! What's even more ridicules is how the Dean was able to pull off the big switch when he could have easily been beaten since he didn't have the highest card in the deck! But still just high enough to beat Vernon's hand! The Dean's success was not because of any kind of luck or card playing skill on his part but that he was in fact a much better cheater in cards then Vernon was!***MAJOR SPOILER*** You finally get to see what happened in the movie, at the big card game, when it was just about over and when your about to turn your DVD or VCR player off. But by then your left so confused in all the twists and turns as well as back stabbings in this very confusing film that you've lost, in trying to follow the movie's plot, all interest in it!

ndlejester That quote says it all really.Shade is the story about one great poker mechanic (Vernon) pitted against the best (The Dean). Then the story gets incredibly tangled and you're not too sure what is really happening until the very end, which throws me for a loop every time I see it. But the crux of this plot is the big poker game with the very best that are around. Our hero, Vernon, gets his buy-in through the financial backing of his partners, Tiffany and Charlie Miller. The game takes place, then starts this domino of events that are just plain absurd, and then we see the truth and pick up our slacked jaws.The way the movie is done reminds me a bit of Pulp Fiction in that the first half of the movie is not straight forward, but sideways we can say. It adds a really neat feel to the movie and kind of keeps you guessing for a while. The club/bar scenes and techno music add a nice flavor to the hustling vibe this movie has, big props for that in my opinion. The acting seems a bit forced for some, especially Tiffany, but otherwise it's a good little flick. I'd say overall somewhere near a 7.75/10, but since there's no fractions I gave it an 8. If you enjoy poker/hustling/Stallone, check this one out.