This is a pretty good picture, which slows down a bit in act two, but finished pretty well.

"Two for the Money" is about a former college football player named Brandon Land, played by Matthew McConaughey (Sahara), after a career ending injury. He takes a job as a sports betting hotline voice, until he attracts Walter Abrams, played by Al Pacino (Angels in America), a sports betting advisor who wants to build his business around Brandon's uncanny ability to research and pick winners.

Brandon, working under the alias John Anthony, lets his ability get to his head and things start going to s**t for him, Abrams and Walter's wife, played by Rene Russo (Mr. Destiny).

I thought the picture was well made and did well to explain most of the sports betting nuances. Pacino was awesome, and McConaughey turned in his usual exceptional work. Russo's role could have been done by anyone, but she did very well also.

The lingo of sports betting may turn some people off from this picture, but the writer Dan Gilroy and director DJ Caruso did well to make sure the audience knew what needed to happen for the games which actually served as plot points, the "big" games.

This picture quickly becomes about its characters. It doesn't have anything new to convey in its messages, but it stays away from most cliches and conventional story directions.

Overall, I think most men will did this flick, and as for the women, McConaughey appears four times without a shirt on and at one point, Pacino and Russo's characters even talk about how great his naked torso looks. What's that about?

Among the sea of p**s-poor movies too great released this year, "Two for the Money" stands out. It may have gotten eclipsed if there was a better selection of cinema to choose from.

Benn - Where's the Humanity?