The Grand
2007 · Movie · 104 min. · United States
Woody Harrelson goes all-in to save his dead grandfather's hotel-casino from a real estate developer in this hilarious mockumentary. His master plan: to win the world's most famous high stakes tournament, the Grand Championship of Poker. Anteing up the laughs are Werner Herzog, Cheryl Hines, David Cross, Ray Romano and Dennis Farina. In the tradition of a Christopher Guest-style mockumentary, an eclectic all-star comedic cast assembles in Las Vegas for a dizzying and hilarious trip into the world of professional poker. Parallel storylines and dozens of cameos-including the likes of Jason Alexander and Brett Ratner-intersect during the game's biggest night: the Grand Championship of Poker, with high stakes for all involved. A recovering party boy is looking to reclaim his grandfather's hotel-casino (Woody Harrelson) from an eccentric real estate developer (Michael McKean), so he faces off against an all-too naïve Midwesterner (Richard Kind) and rival siblings (David Cross and Cheryl Hines) being pushed by their megalomaniacal father (Gabe Kaplan). SNL's Chris Parnell as a misanthropic genius/sci-fi geek and German auteur Werner Herzog as a nihilistic card shark who has an interesting relationship with animals-especially his rabbit- round out the poker table. As the chips fly and the players get closer to the golden pot, it's anyone's game as surprises and antics ensue. With Ray Romano as Cheryl Hines' fantasy-foot-ball-obsessed husband, the tournament becomes a rollicking good time, and the audience is sure to have as much fun as the cast. Seasoned screenwriter Zak Penn(X-Men: The Last Stand), who follows up his directorial debut Incident at Loch Ness with The Grand, knows when to add just the right amount of structure and when to back away and allow his formidable cast to improvise, raising the stakes and bringing the comedy to its full height.
Direction Zak Penn
Cast Woody Harrelson · Cheryl Hines · David Cross · Ray Romano · Jason Alexander · Dennis Farina · Chris Parnell · Richard Kind · Werner Herzog · Mike Epps · Judy Greer · Gabe Kaplan · Julie Claire · Shannon Elizabeth · Hank Azaria · Andrea Savage · David Pressman · Brett Ratner · Barry Corbin
Soundtrack Stephen Endelman
Screenplay Zak Penn · Matt Bierman
Cinematography Anthony Hardwick
Original title The Grand
5.6
105 votes (FilmAffinity)
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