Molly's Game (2017)

A young woman (Jessica Chastain), a former Olympic hopeful in free form skiing, gets into the world of high stakes underground poker in L.A. and New York. The FBI takes an interest in her and arrest her for running illegal games in the hope she can provide information on Russian mobsters that will put them behind bars. Based on the non fiction book MOLLY'S GAME by Molly Bloom and written and directed by Aaron Sorkin in his directorial debut. This is a fast moving first rate crime drama which gives us a peek into the world of private high stakes poker games. It helps if you know something about poker but even if you don't, it's easy to get caught up in the thrill of the game. But this isn't a poker movie, not really. It's about one woman's journey in a distinctly masculine and patriarchal landscape: at home, in the business world and even the government. The character of Molly is a rich and complex role for an actress and Chastain puts her formidable talent to peeling the layers and exposing the core of her character's ferocity and vulnerability. Although based on a true story, the character of her attorney so superbly played by Idris Elba is a fictional character but the rest of the events stay close to the truth. With Kevin Costner, excellent as Chastain's father, Chris O'Dowd, Graham Greene, Michael Cera, Brian D'Arcy James and Angela Gots.