13

So I recognize the irony in that the last movie I watched was titled "Twelve" and this one is "13". Well, the twelve in "Twelve" is not the number twelve, but the name of a drug. And the thirteen in "13" is the number the guy is given for the game they play. So really, the titles are not similar at all. Onward!

13 stars Sam Riley, Ray Winstone, Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham, and Fiddy Cent (ok, so maybe Twelve does have something in common with 13). David Zayas (Angel from Dexter) and Alexander Skarsgard (Eric from True Blood, and the delicious reason why I watched this movie) also have small parts. The plot is that Sam Riley (Vince/13) assumes the identity of a dead guy when he hears that the dead guy is involved in something that could get him lots of money. Vince needs the money because his family is going to have to sell their home to pay for his father's medical bills. So Vince finds himself at a fancy house where rich guys place huge bets on essentially a big game of Russian Roulette.

Now, the concept is pretty interesting, but I kept thinking to myself "who the heck would sign up for this?" surely there are better ways for people to make money (at least for the ones whose lives are at risk).

The scene at the beginning is also problematic to me. It shows Vince pointing a gun at someone and someone pointing a gun back at him. So once we get into the movie and realize what's happening, we think back to that first scene and realize that Vince is not going to die in the first few rounds, which kind of ruins the suspense. I suspect that that scene was used to keep our attention and makes us stick with the movie while the first 20 minutes drag on. There are also a few other things that I wish were different with this movie that may have made it better. I wish that in between the rounds we got to know the players a little better, even after all the time spent between Mickey Rourke and Fiddy, we still have no idea why Mickey is there, and why he plays the first round without protest (we and him later learn it's dangerous to protest), we also never get a solid reason why Ray WInstone is in a hospital, because he doesn't seem sick or crazy. I also wish there was more Alexander Skarsgard, not so I could just delight in his handsomeness, but also because we don't really have any idea what is function is - what his motivation is. I also wish there was more of a resolution to the police investigation.

As a whole, I thought this movie was interesting and enjoyed the unconventional ending. (They can't all be happy! Although you could also almost argue it was kind of a happy ending...)

Not without it's faults, but kind of fascinating.