Ballad of a Small Player (2025) review

Having accrued a sizeable debt from a casino in Macau - and given three days to pay it back - "Lord Doyle" (Colin Farrell) dashes off to another gambling establishment to try and win more money, meets the legendary (and rich) Grandma (Deanie Ip), has a chance encounter with benevolent Dao Ming (Fala Chen) and then must dodge private investigator Cynthia Blithe (Tilda Swinton), who accuses him of stealing from a wealthy woman.  Berger takes advantage of Macau's neo-Vegas glitz for some slick tracking shots and interesting mood lighting, but the story (which was adapted from a book by Lawrence Osborne) is a disappointment: the "Lord" is a louse (Farrell's required to sweat and pant and act up a storm) and the plot relies on half-baked nonsense involving a Ghost Lady who just so happens to supply him (undeservedly) with bags of Hong Kong Dollars and magically grants him luck.  Every gambler on a cold streak would love to know the "secret" to turning things around in their favor, except the real-world answer is most likely not overindulging in expensive champagne and cigars, gorging on beef Wellington and then passing out repeatedly.