Despite strong cast, unique plot, Aces gets trumped

January 29, 2007 —

An ensemble cast, over-the-top violence, and flashy cinematography aren't the bonafide ingredients of an instant classic that Quentin Tarantino's body of work suggests.

Joe Carnahan's Smokin' Aces can attest to that.

Aces bursts out the gates with both guns blazing, introducing us to an assortment of characters played by an eclectic crop of personalities, but fizzles out shortly after.

Hollywood mainstays like Ray Liota, Ryan Reynolds, Andy Garcia, and Ben Affleck are blended with the likes of musicians Alicia Keyes and Common. Even Booger from Revenge of the Nerds is here.

Through the fast-paced introduction, we learn a Vegas showman-turned-gangster-turned-stooge, Buddy "Aces" Israel (played by Jeremy Piven), plans to testify against the mob.

Word of Israel's plan to snitch results in a $1 million bounty being put out for his heart by Primo Sparazza, a dying mob boss played by Joseph Ruskin.

The bounty naturally draws interest from an array of unscrupulous individuals, who venture to Lake Tahoe, where Israel is having one last bash before going into protective custody.

At the same time, attention is also being drawn from the FBI, who see this whole escapade as an opportunity to bring down Sparazza.

The introduction and exposition of the story provide colorful characters, sharp dialogue, and a plot with potential.

Unfortunately, these elements all seem to fade away as we venture deeper and deeper into what turns out to be a paper-thin story that relies too heavily on needless violence.

Aces has drawn many comparisons to the films of Quentin Tarantino, namely his 1994 classic, Pulp Fiction.

The comparisons are justified on the surface, but where Aces fails and Pulp succeeds is in their execution.

Tarantino's characters are vibrant and full of depth; the pace of the storytelling is consistent, and the violence, while plentiful, seems to serve a specific function in the film.

Carnahan should have been able to pull this off, having proved his capability of offering a compelling story with three-dimensional characters in his previous film, the gritty police-drama Narc.

However, Carnahan falters with Aces by introducing the audience to a collection of interesting characters that for the most part, fail to evolve as the story progresses.

Midway through the film, Carnahan decides to exchange sharp dialogue for an excessive barrage of bullets and blood that do little for the story. Except for knocking off a lot of people, of course.

The violence doesn't earn any points in the believability department, either.

In one strange sequence, Ray Liotta and Nester Carbonell unload their clips within an elevator and somehow are both still alive when later found by one of the other hitmen.

Still, the movie does feature a few positives.

Despite a lack of character development, Aces offers a string of impressive performances by a number of known actors.

Piven is exceptional as the Vegas performer who doesn't quite seem to fit his gangster lifestyle. Although lacking at times dramatically, Reynolds is his typical charming self who shows more range than his repertoire has perhaps previously allowed him to.

Jason Bateman of Arrested Development fame continues to make the most of his secondary film roles, this time as a coked-out lawyer trying to get in on the assassination festivities.

In the end, Aces is another one of those outings that has the earmarks for something special, but falls shorts in several areas. If anything, it helps reiterate that making a classic in the Tarantino vein isn't just a matter of collecting big names and exceeding the status quo of violence.