This probably would have been a reasonably entertaining 1930's screwball comedy, if actors the quality of John Barrymore and Carole Lombard had played the leading roles. In the hands of this mediocre cast, however, there are few memorable moments. The lead character is a rube with a genius for mathematics, played by an actor with little to no charisma. He gets pulled in with a group of con men (and one con lady) to enter what turns out to be, in a series of highly improbable events, a highly-publicized and high-dollar bridge tournament. Enter a group of thugs who try to get him to throw the game. The acting is nothing spectacular -- the thick "deese" and "dem" accents of the gangsters is almost comic, and not in a good way. A drunk scene that should have been a comedy highlight was ruined by the ineptness of the cast, who seemed to feel that acting drunk means simply slurring your words and randomly wiggling your head once in a while. Not a bit of chemistry between the actors, who turn in garden-variety performances.
Also, the direction was surprisingly uninspired, which may have been part of the problem. For example: At about 52 minutes into the film, an actor blows one of his lines, and apparently no one bothered with a retake. If the production crew doesn't care, how can you expect the cast to care?
BOTTOM LINE: There are better ways to spend an hour.
