Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
Gerry is a talented but down-on-his-luck gambler whose fortunes begin to change when he meets Curtis, a younger, highly charismatic poker player. The two strike up an immediate friendship and Gerry quickly persuades his new friend to accompany him on a road trip to a legendary high stakes poker game in New Orleans. As they make their way down the Mississippi River, Gerry and Curtis manage to find themselves in just about every bar, racetrack, casino, and pool hall they can find, experiencing both incredible highs and dispiriting lows, but ultimately forging a deep and genuine bond that will stay with them long after their adventure is over.
Mississippi Grind is a quietly effective character study elevated significantly by the chemistry between Ben Mendelsohn and Ryan Reynolds, both delivering nuanced, naturalistic performances that anchor the film's episodic road-trip structure. The plot is familiar territory—compulsive gambling, road movies, unlikely male bonding—handled with enough restraint and emotional honesty to feel genuine rather than formulaic, though it never fully transcends its genre roots. Cinematography is competent and atmospheric, capturing the seedy charm of Southern gambling venues without being visually distinctive. The ending is bittersweet and appropriately ambiguous, resisting easy resolution but also lacking a truly memorable final note. Novelty is moderate: it occupies well-trodden ground but the Anna Boden/Ryan Fleck direction brings a low-key intimacy that sets it apart from flashier gambling films.