The Cooler

Nobody plays a rube as well as William H. Macy, and his character Bernie Lootz is a rube of epic proportions--a guy with such an aura of ill fortune that he makes his strange living at a declining Las Vegas casino, bringing bad luck to hot-streak gamblers. Bernie does this to pay back his own on-credit losing streak that ended when the casino boss--Bernie's callous old pal and Coney Island con partner Shelly Kaplow (Oscar-nominated Alec Baldwin)--capped his knees. "I got off easy," Bernie smiles meekly when telling a haggard but pretty cocktail waitress (Maria Bello) his life story. But in six days, Bernie's debt will be paid, and there's nothing that could keep him in Vegas after that--except perhaps a haggard but pretty cocktail waitress. Written with astute affection and directed with stylish vim by newcomer Wayne Kramer, The Cooler's plot turns on the fact that falling in love changes Bernie's luck--and that's bad for Shelly's business. Macy's virtuoso performance is the heart of this clever, funny, melancholy film, but his costars are all at the top of their games as well. Recommended. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentaries (one by co-writer/director Wayne Kramer, co-writer Frank Hannah, and cinematographer Jim Whitaker; the other by Kramer and composer Mark Isham), a music-only track isolating Isham's original score, the Sundance Channel production “Anatomy of a Scene” (20 min.), multi-angle storyboard comparisons of two scenes, trailers, and a soundtrack spot. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a solid indie film.] (R. Blackwelder)