"The Gambler" focuses on a character so unlikable that an impossible turn of events could be the only redemption. There are more moments than I could count where I wanted to reach through the screen and beg Mark Wahlberg's character to stop. His addictive personality and god like persona creates walls forcing an inability to see the harm he is doing to himself. In his wake, family and friends are left to picture a life without him in it. Wahlberg is brilliant in this movie as both a character you root for and one you couldn't care less about. This dissonance is the core of the movie. You must remember that as every scene unfolds.
Thanks for entering my world,
-Nathan