Inspired by the true story of M.I.T. students who spent weekends in Las Vegas counting cards at the blackjack tables and raking in millions, 21 takes that premise and builds on it, converting it into a run-of-the-mill, if still satisfying, drama.

Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess) is a timid M.I.T. student with “a brain like a Pentium chip” who finds himself in a bit of a bind. He has the grades to get into Harvard Medical School but not the cash. When unorthodox math professor Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey) begins to mentor him, recruiting him to join a select group of gifted students who head to Vegas every weekend armed with the know-how to turn the odds at blackjack in their favor, Ben sees the opportunity he’s been waiting for. Math, it turns out, is profitable.

Ben insists he will leave the group as soon as he gets his tuition covered. However, it isn’t long before he is seduced by the money, the high-rolling lifestyle and his sexy teammate Jill (Kate Bosworth). With new confidence comes a new personality. Boston’s mild-mannered Dr. Jeckel becomes a self-confident Vegas Mr. Hyde, losing his friends back home in the process. But when Ben begins pushing the limits too far, he finds that his mentor can also be a monster, and staying one step ahead of the casinos’ ruthless enforcer (Laurence Fishburne) isn’t as easy as he once thought.

I’ve never been one of those people who find cards all that exciting. I rarely play. And I found the recent poker craze to be an unfathomable enigma. Yet somehow 21 held my interest. Perhaps it was because, rather than relying on chance, 21 is all about hard mathematical probabilities. It’s about using one’s mind to make the complex almost effortless.

21 does a marvelous job tutoring both Ben and its audience in the art of counting cards and being conversant in mathematical lingo. When the time comes for Ben to put his knowledge into practice, we cannot possibly keep up, but we are never at a loss for what’s going on. It’s not that what Ben and his friends do is hard, they just do it about ten times faster than you or I could.

21 uses geography to further juxtapose Ben’s split personality, reflecting his partition in the two cities in which he spends his time. Boston is cold, snow-bound and austere, with the sort of dimly lit, blue-collar pubs we’re used to from Good Will Hunting. Las Vegas, on the other hand, is warm, licentious and aglow, with casinos brimming with noise and life. Is it any wonder Ben finds it hard to resist?

Though 21 goes on a bit too long, it moves at a kinetic clip that holds our interest, building to a completely satisfying conclusion. Slick and pretty to look at, 21 isn’t going to reinvent the genre’s wheel, but it is a diverting enough entry.

© Copyright 2008 Brandon Fibbs. All rights reserved.