Customer Reviews

Poolhall Junkies

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I don't know where this movie came from or even who some of the actors are, but this is a keeper. Good story, interesting characters and some great pool. Anyone who loves Christopher Walken will not be dissapointed.

While I don't know a whole lot about pool, as a movie this one stands out above almost all others to me. It's probably the fact that the characters in the movie are very similar in several regards to me and my friends, we're all around the early to mid 20's mark, but this movie was something that to me could be taken right out of real life and dramatized into this (too?) brief movie. Sure, there are things no 'real' huslter would do, there's some loose ends and some of the escapades are a bit outlandish, but its all very entertaining and not entirely outside the realm of possability and the music is perfect, bluesy to fit the mood of a guy in the somewhat sketchy parts of an inner city trying to make it by and earn few bucks and respect from others and for himself while finding out who he really is.

This is one of the few movies I have seen that I feel deserves more attention. In addition to featuring the last performance by screen legend Rod Stieger, it features excellent turns by both Chazz Palminteri and Christopher Walken. The first effort by Mars Callahan, this was written ten years ago, but only filmed and released two years ago. Never has a movie about a sport that isn't really even a sport held my interest through game after game of pool. My advice is to at least rent it if you're a fan of comedies or con movies

I am a pool junkie myself, and this film, while somewhat entertaining just by the fact it deals with pool, falls well short of the mark. The story itself is very underdeveloped, and leaves alot of loose ends. There are a few clever exchanges of bravado and quips, but any pool player with a few years of experience will tell you that this stuff just doesn't happen. No one loses a few hundred, or few thousand bucks on a drinking or pool game that hinges on symantics like "your" shot or "my" shot, and pays up with a "hey ya got me" grin.

The pool is bad. The main character says he can tell Walken has been playing pool from a crease in his pants and some blue chalk marks. First I'd be leary of a guy looking at my pants, second they return to a table with red felt. Who uses blue chalk on red felt? These "pro" level hustlers end up going three to five rails on almost every shot, playing for upwards of $80,000 in a 9 ball race to 5. While the shots are impressive, I ask you this ... What decent poolplayer has to shoot every shot as a bank or three rail shot? If you can't leave yorself even one straight in shot in 5 games, should you really be playing for thousands a game?

The story is ridiculous. The shots are dazzling, but so ridiculously over complicated for a a poolhall money game. Walken is wasted here. The story is weak. If you can look past the lack of plot development, and the technical deficiencies and just want to watch anything about pool, it is OK. There are a few quotes you will find yourself trying to remember for the poolhall, and an 8 ball shot that you will have to try yourself, but have probably tried already before seeing the movie.

This movie is strictly for the non critcal "Poolhall Junkie".

**1/2 Though likeable at times, "Poolhall Junkies" is essentially an uneven mix of comedy and drama. Gregory "Mars" Martin, who co-wrote and directed the film, also stars as Johnny Doyle, a hustler-with-a-heart-of-gold who coulda' been a contenda' if only his mentor/manager, Joe (Chazz Palminteri), hadn't stood in his way.

"Poolhall Junkies" demonstrates the risks inherent in a young filmmaker finding it necessary to cast himself in the starring role. Though he somehow managed to rope such acting heavyweights as Palminteri, Rod Steiger and the ubiquitous Christopher Walken into his project, Martin himself has nowhere near the intensity and gravitas necessary to take center stage in a film. As a result of his weak performance, the film lacks the intensity and grit it needs to succeed. In addition, the movie suffers from unfocused plotting, a few too many characters, corny dialogue and a predictable resolution. The one saving grace of the film, however, is that it doesn't take itself too seriously and doesn't feel the need to go into melodramatic overdrive to make its points.

"Poolhall Junkies" is a painless time waster, though better you should spend that time re-watching "The Hustler" and reminding yourself how this material should be done. Or, better yet, maybe Martin should have done that before taking on this assignment.

Rack 'em up.

I liked the movie a lot. I think that the acting was good and Walken was a great fit in the roles like Chazz too. It may have lacked a little in the dramatics but overall the dialogue and the the poolhall atmosphere was portrayed nicely. If you are a huge pool buff or a huge pool movie buff, this may not be high on your list but still it is very well made and honestly could have been worse. Makes me wanna get a "hustler" shirt and head down to my poolhall looking like a badass.

So what's this guy's name, anyway? The director-writer-star of "Poolhall Junkies" is listed as Mars Callahan on the movie credits, but as Gregory "Mars" Martin on this Web site. In any case, "Poolhall Junkies" is Mars' attempt as self-mythologizing, taking bits and pieces from other, better movies--"The Hustler," "Rocky," "Diner," "Saturday Night Fever." Nevertheless, the movie has just enough energy and talent to make it worth a look. Mars plays a young pool hustler who breaks off with his treacherous manager (Chazz Palminteri), only to find that life in the straight world isn't easy for him. To get his gifted but unstable brother (Michael Rosenbaum) out of a jam, he must take up his cue again to play Palminteri's new flunky (Rick Schroder). Mars has a way with writing tough-guy dialogue, and the scenes where he and Rosenbaum hang out with their posse (Phillip Glasser, Anson Mount, Ernie Reyes Jr.) have a certain charm. The pool scenes also have a certain razzle-dazzle; if Mars and Schroder really can play that well, they should go on the pro tour immediately. But Mars either is too confident in his directorial abilities, or not confident enough; he undercuts the basic tension of the pool matches with arty camera angles and fast-motion effects. He also overestimates his gifts as an actor--he is good-looking and moves well in front of the camera, but his eyes are dead--and he saddled himself with an inept leading lady in Alison Eastwood, Clint's daughter. Palminteri is stuck in a standard-issue thug role, and Schroder has little to do, as does the late Rod Steiger as the kindly owner of the poolhall. (IMHO, the movie would have been better if Schroder and Mars had switched roles.) The film's best performance by far is by Christopher Walken, as an affable, wealthy lawyer who takes a shine to Mars.

Gregory Mars Martin (Callahan), aka Mars Callahan, has given us a chunk of his heart, and great waves of youthful enthusiasm. Callahan, an accomplished pool player, and his hustler buddy Chris Corso, wrote this screenplay. It was shopped around for over ten years, and now it has emerged as a sterling Indie; something to aspire to. It was filmed in Salt Lake City, but little was made of that. It could have been any large city.

His directorial style is sideswipe close to that of Edward Burns; urban, hip, gritty, and intelligent. Hopefully Callahan has some other ideas, and he will follow up with new projects.
Callahan obviously loves movies, and he has given himself the lead part; Johnny Doyle. As it turns out, he is a gifted actor. Roger Ebert called him," McQueen cool.". Another critic, a cretin, called him," Vince Vaughn lite.". Ebert wrote further,
" This is a young man's film, humming with the joy of making it.".

One can't help but to notice when Callahan makes his first appearance on the screen that he does have a tall lanky hip young Christopher Walken persona. Brilliantly for the film, Walken himself was cast in the movie. In an early scene, when he and Walken share the frame, Walken said," I noticed you right away; the hair. Are we related ? " The movie is laden with other movie-lover's moments; tongue-in-cheek and over the top.

If a person likes to shoot pool, this film will be smoky eye candy. The cons, the chatter, the grifts, and the trick shots; all slip by smoothly. You can hear the echo in the pool room, and smell the chalk, the felt on the tables, and the cigar smoke. You hear those ceramic balls crash together in a macho symphony of staccato clanks; and what a lovely sound it is. Callahan in voice over in the preface, speaks of Johnny Doyle,
" The cue was part of his arm, and the balls had eyes. And he really believed that he couldn't miss.".

With Callahan in the lead, speaking his own written dialogue, one senses more immediacy, more reality in the pool hall scenes. As a director, he scored well, landing four heavy hitters in the casting; Walken as uncle Mike the millionaire, Chazz Palminteri as Joe the hustler, Rod Steiger as Nick the owner of the pool hall, and Rick Schroder as Brad the shark. Alison Eastwood was fine, as well, as Johnny's ladyfriend, Tara. This modest little film has all the grit, the validity, and the sting of THE HUSTLER, and in some subtle ways it scores higher than the Scorsese opus THE COLOR OF MONEY.

The plot, far from original ( a young man becomes a pool hustler, but learns to hate the con and yearns for the validation of turning professional), never the less is engaging in Callahan's capable hands. We can not help but care about Johnny Doyle. We want him to get his girlfriend back, and get revenge on the vicious hustler that ruined his life, working him like a pool whore, and then nearly breaking his left wrist in reprisal; and we want him to beat the daylights out of the stoic stud pro-ringer pool shark; and we want him to renew the faith that the pool hall owner has always had in him; and we want him to get his younger brother out of jail (Michael Rosenbaum), who got himself deep into a jam while trying to emulate Johnny.

Christopher Walken simply in a few brief scenes dominates the screen. He is more relaxed, more dynamic, and more focused in this role than he has been in years. He delivered one classic soliloquy that started with," Do you ever watch the Nature Channel ?". This speech will be a highlight for film buffs to review for the next millennium. He is one of a handful of actors, like Harvey Keitel, Tim Robbins, Steve Buscemi, Tim Roth, and Gary Oldman, that supports the notion that film truly is Art, and that Independent Films are the breath of life. For movie actors it used to be that only appearing on stage, doing live theatre in front of an audience, could produce that kick, that adrenilin rush. But now, it seems, that same high can be achieved when a star works cheap and takes chances in the celluloid world of the Indies.

Roger Ebert also wrote that this film was," enjoyably overwrought, and exuberantly stylish."; praise from Caesar. It certainly is worth a look. For me it ranks high in the short lexicon of billiard epics.

I'm not much for words but I really love this movie, I own it and I've watched it several times...and all of my friends love it! Check it out you won't be disappointed.

Thank you for your time.

i was not expecting much out of this movie when i recently rented it. that was a week ago. six days ago i went out and bought myself a copy of this film.

i was blown away by this flick. let me preface this by saying, i in no way think this is the best written, best acted movie i have ever seen, but it is by far one of the best overall! this movie has alot of heart for being a low budget indie flick! palminteri and walken (as usual) are wonderful in the movie. martin (who also directs) does a very solid job in his lead role.

this movie follows a pool-hustler (martin) as he is trying to give up the con. while he attempts to give it up, it seems to constantly pull him back in. following him along the way are a brother, his friends, and a girlfriend who is a young lawyer. this movie has a well-written, fast-paced, witty script.

poolhall junkies was such a pleasant surprise for me that my copy has been viewed at least three times already as i continue to show it to my friends, who also love the film. i highly recommend it for anyone looking for a good, entertaining movie!