Wild Christmas (2000)

Wild Christmas: Directed by John Frankenheimer. With Ben Affleck, James Frain, Dana Stubblefield, Mark Acheson. After assuming his dead cell-mate’s identity to get with the other man’s girlfriend, an ex-convict finds himself a reluctant participant in a casino heist.

“I can imagine the pitch for u0026quot;Reindeer Gamesu0026quot; being thrown at the execs behind the picture…u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu0026quot;Okay, itu0026#39;s about this guy, whou0026#39;s not who he says he is, who everybody thinks he is, who fools these guys who thinks he is, falls in love with this girl who thinks he is, even though he isnu0026#39;t, and they try to pull a heist with his expertise, even though he has none.u0026quot;u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNick (Ben Affleck) has just been released from jail for defending his girlfriend in a fight prior to being thrown into the slammer. Upon his release, a long-time pen pal named Ashley (Charlize Theron) greets him and they immediately hit the sack. However, her brother (Gary Sinise) wants Nick to help them pull a heist on Christmas Eve at a local Indian casino, which is run by a money hungry wannabe (Dennis Farina). Her brother kidnaps Nick, holds a gun to his head and commands him to draw up a sketch of the security points in the casino, since he used to work there and knows all there is to know about the casino. There is one minor detail, however, that may hinder their plan.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNick is not Nick.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNick is really a car jacker who overheard his jail cellmate, Nick, reading his letters from a penpal named Ashley aloud. Nick was killed before his release in the jail cafeteria, and so Nick took his identity so that he could meet up with the infamous Ashley he kept hearing about, forming a mental picture of her in his head.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIf you stop to take the time and think through all the minor details of the filmu0026#39;s plot (especially given the u0026quot;twistu0026quot; ending), youu0026#39;ll probably arive upon the conclusion that itu0026#39;s all a bunch of bull. It simply doesnu0026#39;t make sense if you really take the time to think it through.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIf you donu0026#39;t put your brain to work, however, youu0026#39;ll find yourself having fun watching director John Frankenheimeru0026#39;s last film. Frankenheimer was a talented director, the man behind such films as u0026quot;The Manchurian Candidate,u0026quot; u0026quot;Secondsu0026quot; and u0026quot;Ronin.u0026quot; His last feature was one of his most stylish and brutal, fast-paced, funny, and often just fun to sit through.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eGary Sinise (u0026quot;Forrest Gump,u0026quot; u0026quot;Ransomu0026quot;) is his usual villainious self, while the real surprise comes from actress Charlize Theron, who switches character a lot through the film, especially towards the end, and is a real beauty and delight to watch. Sheu0026#39;s the filmu0026#39;s high point, and though people criticize the plot, I found u0026quot;Reindeer Gamesu0026quot; mildly inventive with its shifting twists and turns, even if they arenu0026#39;t always so believable.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe filmu0026#39;s downfall is its ending, which feels as if the filmmakers got caught up in all their twists and turns and unconsciously wrote themselves into a wall, then suddenly slapped on a cheesy, cliched ending with a sentimental good guy closing scene. Itu0026#39;s rushed, silly, and doesnu0026#39;t fit in with the rest of the film.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIrregardless of its uncountable flaws, u0026quot;Reindeer Gamesu0026quot; (or u0026quot;Deceptionu0026quot; as it is called in the UK) is a fun film, John Frankenheimeru0026#39;s final movie. u0026quot;Reindeer Gamesu0026quot; is often linked as Frankenheimeru0026#39;s long-time dream picture, much like Sergio Leoneu0026#39;s u0026quot;Once Upon a Time in America.u0026quot; Like a dying manu0026#39;s final words, perhaps it conveyed some hidden meaning to Frankenheimer. Or, maybe everyone was wrong. Maybe u0026quot;Reindeer Gamesu0026quot; is nothing but another Frankenheimer film, this one not as good as most of his others.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBut u0026quot;Rosebudu0026quot; didnu0026#39;t mean anything to anyone except Charles Foster Kane. Maybe u0026quot;Reindeer Gamesu0026quot; meant something to John Frankenheimer. However, as anyone who has ever seen u0026quot;Citizen Kaneu0026quot; probably knows, itu0026#39;s not likely that weu0026#39;ll ever find out what it means, even if we try.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e3/5 stars. Enjoyable if you donu0026#39;t put your brain to work.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu003culu003eu003cliu003eJohn Ulmeru003c/liu003eu003c/ulu003e”