User Reviews

This nonsensical and bizarre noir initially offers some intrigue as to where exactly this dark tale is going. However, to me, it just seemed to get more and more convoluted and ridiculous as it progressed.

Set in Las Vegas, George Eads gives a solid performance here as Jack, a wise-cracking poker playing chump, who always seems to be dodging or getting beaten up by his creditors. One night, he's approached in the casino by a wealthy smarmy gambler, named Duffy (Stephen Lang), who offers Jack a chance to make some big bucks, but won't reveal to him the details.

When Jack gets desperate enough for cash, he takes Duffy up on his offer and goes to his mansion. Jack soon finds out the deal is for him to have sex with Duffy's sultry wife May (AnnaLynne McCord), while Duffy observes and Jack will receive $20,000.

Of course, you know that things are not going to go smoothly and Jack will get himself deeper and deeper in a web of deceit and death. When Duffy's brother Lewis arrives on the scene, even more mayhem and murder will follow.

As so often happens in these types of films, Steven Seagal's name will be used for advertising but his screen time is limited in a supporting role. Why Tia Carrere agreed to play a ridiculous cameo role of a strip club drinks hustler is beyond me.

All in all, I found Eads performance here good, but after an initial interest into where this was going, I just found this noir to eventually turn into just a muddled mess of a movie.

"CSI" regular George Eads plays Jack, a snake-bitten Las Vegas gambler in Las Vegas, who has a knack for getting himself knee-deep in trouble. Eads makes a convincing but hopeless nobody, and he looks nothing like the sympathetic crime scene investigator that he portrays on the CBS-TV television series. Instead, he portrays the kind of character who you'd neither want to meet nor hang out with because he is a loser. Happily, "Death and Cremation" director Justin Steele surrounds him with a veteran cast of familiar tough-guys, including Stephen Lang, Ted Levine, Vinnie Jones, and Steven Seagal, that give the action a modicum of substance. Steele imbues this brooding 85-minute melodrama about a charismatic loser with a creepy, mysterious film noir flavor.

Down and out, owing just about everybody in Sin City, Jack (George Eads) runs into an older guy, Duffy (Stephen Lang of "Avatar"), in a casino who makes him a proposition: "How'd you like to make some dollars? Enough dollars to keep you at the adult table for a long, long time." Naturally, our misbegotten protagonist could use plenty of dough. Taking Jack home to his palatial residence, Duffy tries to persuade him to make love with his gorgeous wife, May (AnnaLynne McCord of "The Transporter 2"), but the scrupulous Jack displays considerable reluctance. Apparently, Jack doesn't like being told what to do. A brief physical struggle ensues between Jack and Duffy while May watches from the pool. During the fracas, Jack shoves Duffy, and Duffy's head strikes an object and the impact kills him. Jack didn't plan to murder Duffy, and he is pretty upset at the accidental turn of events. May and he stuff Duffy's corpse into the trunk of a Maserati, and Jack wanders off the next day in the brutal heat of Vegas to sleep it off in his Volvo that he cannot get to crank up. Jack is such a woebegone guy with so many problems that it is easy to see why an actor would love to fill in the gaps and play him. Ultimately, he isn't the kind of character that an audience wants to commune with for the length of any movie.

Later, Jack encounters Duffy's scummy brother Lewis(Ted Levine of "Silence of the Lambs") who turns out to be a notorious loan shark. Lewis proudly shows Jack his prized possession—the car that May disposed of Duffy's body with—and we learn that Lewis is an absolute jerk. Interestingly, Lewis thinks that Duffy has gone away on a trip. A suspicious Jack leaves Lewis after Lewis mentions his name; Jack never told Lewis his name so he doesn't trust him. On his way out, Jack runs into May. She confides in Jack that she buried Duffy's body in the desert. Eventually, Lewis shows Jack a tablet that contains a video of Jack at Lewis' house. This is how Lewis knew Jack's name. Anyhow, Lewis knows everything about Jack, his mountain of gambling debt, and his wife and daughter. Surprisingly, Lewis isn't put out that Jack had something to do with his brother's death. He wants him now to kill May and he is prepared to blackmail to get him to do it. May shows up at Jack's sleazy motel and Jack assures her that he will take care of Lewis. We learn that Duffy was a terrible husband who basically kept May in a cage and watched her constantly when he wasn't out drinking and making out with strippers. Jack goes to Paulie (Steven Seagal of "Exit Wounds") through another man that he owes money, Carl (Vinnie Jones of "Snatch"), and Paulie agrees to help him. He gives Jack a revolver, and Jack and Lewis tangle in a gritty fistfight while treacherous May observes the fisticuffs. May gets the drop on Jack and she tries to kill him, but the gun backfires and blows her away. Paulie kills Lewis and they warn Jack to clear out of town.

"Gutshot Straight" occurs primarily in Las Vegas casinos and at an exotic house with a swimming pool and flaming torches. As slickly done as the action is, nothing really happens in this pedestrian 85-minute melodrama stocked with despicable characters. Jack finds himself in trouble for a murder that he didn't mean to commit, and he flees to his friends that he owes money and gets them to polish off the villain. The action comes full circle. Although it contains polished production values, "Gutshot Straight" essentially qualifies as a potboiler. Stephen Lang and Ted Levine spend more time on screen than either Steven Seagal or Vinnie Jones. Seagal fans won't like it that the paunchy Seagal has what amounts to a cameo. The DVD commentary is interesting and contains insights into the production. This is a one-time watch it only movie.

I came across this film unintended. Saw the name Seagal and thought OK, another B- Action movie... exactly what I wanted to see. But it said Thriller.. so I watched with interest... the opening credit went on with some pleasant music but I didn't realize then... the film did not develop as I hoped, no violence explosion, no hard shooting etc.. no running LOL... actually, now for me *SPOILER ALERTS!!!* this is a Drama /Existentialism (I always label films with 2 categories). This is by no means a Film Noir like some here on the board try to say. That is an insult to all the great films of the 40ties and early fifties... but alas, so many here have no clue about it and write stupid comments. Here we have no tension, we have no suspense and bleak outlook, that only can be done with good actors committing themselves and a good script. Here we have lame acting at best, and a director who wants to be more than he can achieve. Anyway.

.. so about 30 min. into the film, I was already a little less interested, Duffy proposed Jack to fu*k his girl (May), that was the moment I said to myself Stop... what is this? Made no sense to what I was expecting from the movie.. but anyway, I was emotionally maybe a little opener that usually (because of personal reasons)... so as Jack was hit, fell in the pool.. woke up ... and then, looked at May, asking her if these were his cloth...... ever from the first second where the music came back in, when Jack was talking to May, the two tones from the song "The Spider" give an introduction, more noticeable than in the beginning of the film... same song, but at first watching, this was not clear to me. The talk, the story, was weird, but this music kept me captive... I stopped actually the film and googled the soundtrack, none available.. it is the only essential music in this film. astonishing... and a real discovery. love it, even the entry lyrics are intriguing...

"I must confess, I've done you wrong, and now you're tangled in the web of my song... "

exactly what i was... falling in the web of this song. GREAT!!!

the song is available on Youtube, either film clip or video clip.

The ending of the video clip with the vampire kiss is not necessary, because the retro look was cool enough.. (Greta didn't even have the heavy red lips as expected, she looks gorgeous). Sometimes newbies want to add too much things together which do not fit. That is maybe the border between amateurish/mechanical and real talent.

The film has real flaws and weaknesses, others here have commented on that, so I refrain. But: We look movies for many reasons... this one is slightly below average but will stay in my memory because I discovered a great song.. and besides Films (DVD, MP4), I collect music... so thank you Keith Waggoner for that great song... One song is enough to make me happy and don't feel I had wasted time on the movie... :). Will even revisit the film, even though I have the lead song in my iTunes database... and listen to it a lot. 5/10

The film centers on Jack Daniels (George Eads) a drinker and gambler. He owes Pauli (Steven Seagal) money. Paulie takes a shine to him, but Carl (Vinnie Jones) who collects for Paulie doesn't. Jack gets involved with a rich man (Stephen Lang) who wants Jack to do different things (AnnaLynne McCord) for money, but not nearly as entertaining as "Cheap Thrills."

The plot was straight forward and plodded slowly without any character development. The title is a poker term. Drawing two cards to an inside straight is really risky, stupid, and lucky in draw poker. However in Texas Holdem' starting out with two cards together and then building outside is not that remarkable.

Seagal and Jones are briefly in the film. Jones delivered his half dozen or so lines convincing. Seagal lit a big cigar and started talking like Marlon Brando while looking like Eddie Munster (see hair DVD cover). If that was your goal Steven, I was laughing with you. Might want to wait for a real Seagal film.

What I did love was the 60's kaleidoscope opening with a decent theme song. I thought I was going to watch a quality Bond film.

Mensa Porn Star Tia Carrere plays a small role as a stripper soliciting a drink at the bar. She is outsmarted by Jack.

Parental Guide: F-bomb. Brief sex. Nudity.