Just saw a new movie called "Shade". While it was not the best movie I ever went to see, if you like gambling, cards, poker, con games and cheating....you will enjoy it....I did.

Here is a review of the movie.

Poker is a game of some skill and lots of luck - but only if the dealer doesn't know what he's doing. A good card mechanic can take all the chance out of the game.

Charlie Miller (Gabriel Byrne) and his girl Tiffany (Thandie Newton) are card sharks that work the underground gambling circuit in LA, running cons on unsuspecting guys like Larry (Jamie Foxx). They set their marks up to be big winners, then screw them over on the big hands. They bring in their former partner and Tiffany's ex-boyfriend, Vernon (Stuart Townsend), to set up a really big scam. They're going to go after the legendary card mechanic, Dean Stevens (Sylvester Stallone), but they need $250,000 just to get in the game. They borrow the money from a former mark, but when you're playing with mob money - you'd better win or somebody is going to wind up dead.

Whenever there's a love triangle like this one between Charlie, Vernon and Tiffany, you know it's going to end badly for at least one of them. Especially, when the girl is a con artist - you know Tiffany is up to something and she's going to betray one of the guys, you just don't know how or who. She's the kind of girl that will steal a guy's kidney (literally) to make a quick buck, not exactly somebody to trust.

There are a lot of twists and turns, double-crosses, alliances formed that are based on lies, and in the end, everybody pretty much gets what they deserve. The movie suffers from some extraneous plotlines (like the kidney snatching) and several characters that are brought in to throw off who's scamming whom. Some of the "surprises" are a little predictable, but it's still fun to watch them unfold.

It's a little hard to understand if everybody cheats, why you would want to play, but I guess it's to determine who can cheat the best. There are juiced decks where you can see through the back of the cards and some impressive card tricks.

Stuart, Thandie and Gabriel give nice performances in this ensemble cast that also includes Melanie Griffith, Bo Hopkins, Hal Holbrook, and Dina Merrill. As for Stallone, this is a supporting role that allows him to be THE MAN, without having to rely on him to carry the story - it works well for him.