A good buddy road movie with a difference. Our heroes are actually junkies of an overlooked yet very destructive drug - gambling. Like the more infamous alcohol and chemical substances, this drug tears families apart and makes some people destitute. This isn't a Cool Hand Luke were you hustle your way through games to pay for the big tournament to be crowned the best pool player. This is hard core addiction as opposed to recreational thrills. They'll bet on dogs, horses, ballgames or sports they know little about but odds look good. Games of chance they'll take it on, poker / blackjack and dice. They win big it's not enough, it ended with the last show of cards or roll of dice. Need the thrill again, even bigger, everything you've won on a single throw of a card or dice. Real life says this never ends well.

Mississippi GrindThe chemistry among the lead characters is the key that unlocks this feature into something colossal which was beyond its grasp if considered the mere premise. It isn't shot nicely and the tone of it too, isn't pleasing or seeks viewers' attention through it. Such technical aspects is where the feature lags behind where neither the background score nor the editing is in its favour. On terms of writing, the script is gripping and flows unflinchingly to the predictable outcome but there isn't enough crisp to breed the cinematic experience out of it. Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck; the writer-director, surpasses their script on execution and connects within the first few minutes with the audience and doesn't let go for around 100 minutes. The performance is decent by both Ryan Gosling and Ben Mendelsohn but no such particular reason to be in awe with it. As much as simple the feature swifts away through its charm there are few heartbreaking moments especially when Ben visits his house and when Ryan converses with his partner. The structure is uneven and isn't divided into multiple acts like most of them but stays true to its tone throughout the course of it. Mississippi Grind has hard rubbing and fine crushing where truth is depicted in a harsh bold way and keeps the stakes at risk, all the time.

Questionable entertainment value, watching two '" train wrecks" happening at the same time. It's a buddy road movie with the theme being the pathetic lives that are the result of compulsive gambling. Two losers like Ben Mendelsohn and Ryan Reynolds play certainly don't deserve any glorification. The low point is when Mendelsohn tries to steal money from his ex-wife. The acting is good, however the story meanders, and at times is sleep inducing. You do get some nice photography of various towns along the Mississippi. What is not so nice is the toxic effect their gambling addiction has on their relationships. Both characters come across as self serving jerks, with little regard for anything but their own destructive behavior. - MERK

I expected more out of Ryan Reynolds. The movie for me was like a trainwreck of donks. If you want to watch how people ruin their lives with no real plot line, then this movie is for you. We only got halfway through it before we just couldn't continue watching. I actually don't know how it ends, but it is just one bad decision after another up until a little after the halfway point. Not much substance to the movie and not much character building either. Kinda disappointed Ryan Reynolds would have picked this movie to be a part of. He is one of my favorite actors and this may be the only movie of his I did not like. It wasn't the worst movie I have ever watched, it just wasn't anything special and pretty much lost my attention less than ten minutes in. Boring and not really much going on.