VENICE 2021: The Card Counter

Hanway Films

Paul Schrader sure is an interesting filmmaker. For mainstream audiences he has been defined by his collaborations with director Martin Scorsese. For young cinephiles he is known for his A24 gem First Reformed. For older cinephiles, he has made underseen classics such as Light Sleeper and Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters. Only die-hard fans or apologists actually love his most recent output as a filmmaker, with movies like Dying of the Light and The Canyons being universally panned by critics and audiences worldwide.

The hype behind his most recent film, The Card Counter, is most definitely going to disappoint those that have only seen his 2017 quasi-remake of Bergman’s Winter Light, for this is much closer to the real Paul Schrader of old. Featuring a heavy dose of cynical narration like Taxi Driver, the story has much of the bitter humour and critique of American society and politics that have always been front and centre in the work of the American screenwriter.

The Card Counter is at once a feature-length version of that one poker scene from Martin Campbell’s Casino Royale, and also a character study of a broken man (Oscar Isaac) trying to do good in the world. On his journey he finds quite the colourful cast of characters, and he gets dragged into a revenge plot against a military colonel (Willem Dafoe). The trailer definitely paints this as more exciting and high-octane than it really is: Schrader once again goes back to the well of his favourite filmmakers in terms of inspiration, this time taking heavily from Robert Bresson as far as mood and atmosphere are concerned. He crafts very slow, quiet scenes with minimal camera movement, but he also juxtaposes them with genuinely insane use of cross-cutting, shallow depth of focus, and a terrifying fish-eye lens that depicts an army jail in a truly hellish way.

It is an immensely enjoyable experience for those who manage to find themselves on the very specific wavelength that Schrader is on. Dialogue often features stilted and cliched interactions that intentionally hearken back to simpler eras of storytelling, yet it still manages to be surprising and engaging all the way through. Isaac proves once again that he is one of the most talented actors working today, with a meaty lead role that gives him plenty of memorable scenes. Both Tye Sheridan and Willem Dafoe do a solid job, especially the former as his relationship with Isaacs’ character is a strong part of the emotional core of the film. But it is Tiffany Haddish who is the biggest surprise, as she manages to hold her own in a primarily dramatic role, while still bringing much of her signature comedy that still fits the general mood of the film.

While it still tackles many themes that have been touched on in more serious and in-depth ways in other films (Schrader’s own Dying of the Light is more overtly about PTSD and Guantanamo-era torture), The Card Counter is a blast from beginning to end. A visual treat, a tense thriller, with engaging blackjack and poker scenes, a commanding performance from Oscar Isaacs, and plenty of self-indulgent scenes that end up making this an absolute treat.