Reindeer Games (2000)

“[narrating] You hang around with criminals, you end up making a lot of plans. But all the jobs I ever pulled, all the cars I ever stole, no plan ever went down the way it had been drawn up. My plans to escape never worked. And being on parole, going to the police wasn’t an option. ” – Rudy Duncan

Number of Times Seen – Twice (3 Nov 2000 and 1 Jan 2019)

Brief Synopsis – In order to meet his cellmate’s female pen pal, a recently released convict pretends to be him which eventually gets more complicated when things are not as they seem to be.

My Take on it – This is a film that I recall enjoying quite a lot when I saw it not long after it came out.

It easily fits into the heist genre that became popular again in the 90’s.

Ben Affleck is great in the lead role because he is able to show his character as being quite naive yet still understands how the world of crime works as things progress along the way.

The plot moves along at a great pace and they found a way to keep added twists and turns throughout that keep redefining everything going on right before out eyes.

The supporting cast is also great but Charlize Theron and Gary Sinise are the standouts especially since Sinise manages to get the look and feel of a criminal Lt. Dan and keep it very creepy throughout.

Dennis Farina is also great in a small role as the casino manager.

Bottom Line – Very interesting heist film that works quite well despite being a bit too generic. Affleck is great in the lead and plays his part very well as he is meant to be quite naive. The plot moves at a great pace and they manage to give us some great twists and turns along the way that keep changing the way we can look at everything happening. The supporting cast is great with Theron and Sinise standing out among them. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – The character names Rudy and Nick are an allusion to the song “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” from which this movie takes it title. Nick (St. Nicholas) orchestrates the entire plan, only to have Rudy (Rudolph) lead it. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (7/10)