Lucky Number Slevin

Who doesn't like a nice, twisty mystery, with calibrated turns designed to keep viewers off balance and an ending calculated to astonish, especially when it's crammed with tasty dialogue? Unfortunately, Paul McGuigan's Lucky Number Slevin is not The Usual Suspects. The convoluted script opens with a flashback in which a young father tries to make a killing by betting on a rigged race, only to lose everything and invite mob retaliation against his family. Cut to the present: an unidentified young man is killed in an airport terminal by a fellow who talks about the “Kansas City Shuffle,” serving up the first of many misdirections in the larger plot--a Hitchcockian “wrong man” scenario in which another guy (Josh Hartnett) is mistaken for his friend and ordered by a crime lord (Morgan Freeman) either to pay off a huge gambling debt or kill a rival mobster (Ben Kingsley). While there's definitely fun to be had along the way—the script ties up the narrative threads neatly, the cast is strong, and much of the writing is slick and funny—the film is like a puzzle that, when completed, proves to be a bit of a disappointment, wrapping up with an overlong bondage sequence and a sentimental turn that doesn't jibe with all the smarty-pants business that's preceded it. Still, consider this a strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD extras include two audio commentaries (one with director Paul McGuigan; the other with writer Jason Smilovic and costars Josh Hartnett and Lucy Liu), four deleted scenes including an alternate ending (21 min.), a 14-minute “making-of” featurette, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for an uneven thriller.] (F. Swietek)