Two for the Money (2005 film)

Brandon Lang is a former college football star who, after sustaining a career-ending injury, takes a job handicapping football games. His success at choosing winners catches the eye of Walter Abrams, who is the slick head of one of the biggest sports consulting operations in the United States. Walter takes Brandon under his wing, and soon, they are making tremendous amounts of money.

Lang's in-depth knowledge of the game, leagues and players brings in big winnings and bigger clients. Abrams's cable television show, The Sports Advisors, skyrockets in popularity when he adds Lang's slick "John Anthony" persona to the desk, infuriating Jerry Sykes, who, until now, has been Walter's in-house expert. Lang's image is remade with a new car, new wardrobe, and a new look, with the assistance of Walter's wife Toni, a hair stylist.

Things suddenly go bad, however, when Lang begins playing his hunches instead of doing his homework. He loses his touch, eventually being physically assaulted by the thugs of a gambler who lost a large amount of money by following Lang's advice. As a result, Abrams and Lang's once-solid relationship sours.

Lang's new high-rolling lifestyle depends entirely on his ability to successfully predict the outcomes of the games. Millions of dollars are at stake by the time when he places his last bet, and Abrams, a recovering gambling addict and alcoholic, grows increasingly unstable. He secretly begins risking his own money on Lang's picks and becomes suspicious that Lang is having an affair with his wife.

Lang's predictions come true for the last game, which he made at the last minute by nervously flipping a coin in the bathroom of the studio where he and Abrams tape their weekly TV show. While Abrams and the rest of the staff nervously watch the game, Lang leaves New York City, watching the game's outcome on an airport television. Soon, he begins coaching a junior league football team.

• Al Pacino as Walter Abrams
• Matthew McConaughey as Brandon Lang
• Rene Russo as Toni Abrams
• Armand Assante as C.M. Novian
• Carly Pope as Tammy
• Jeremy Piven as Jerry Sykes
• Jaime King as Alexandria
• Ralph Garman as Reggie
• Charles Carroll as Chuck Adler
• Ildiko Ferenczi as Friend
• Veena Sood as G.A. Hostess

Two for the Money received generally negative reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes reports that 22% of critics give the film positive reviews, based on 109 reviews, with an average score of 4.7/10. Its consensus states: "Despite its sportsmanlike swagger, Two for the Money's aimless plot isn't worth betting on."^[2] The film's box-office receipts came to $22,991,379 in the United States and $30,526,509 worldwide, against a production budget of $35 million.^[1] The film also got mixed-to-average reviews on review aggregator Metacritic, where it scored 50 out of a 100, based on 29 critical reviews.^[3]

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 3½ stars out of 4,^[4] while Nick Schager of Slant Magazine gave it 2 out of 4, saying in his opening comments, "Substitute The Devil's Advocate's satanic legal scheming with unethical sports gambling practices and you've got Two for the Money."^[5] Two for the Money also received 48% from Cinafilm, which based it on 507 reviews,^[6] as well as a C from Reeling Reviews.^[7]

Two for the Money was released on DVD and VHS on January 17, 2006. It is the last film released by Morgan Creek Productions to receive a VHS release.^{[citation needed]}

• List of American football films

• Official website
• Two for the Money at IMDb