7 Days to Vegas

I clearly enjoyed it more than the actual ratings show and when I read the other reviews I'm apparently not the only one. Based on a true story, which makes it even better, 7 Days To Vegas is an easy to watch entertaining movie. I wouldn't say it's as funny as The Hangover, like some other reviewer wrote, but it has some good funny moments as well. Gambling on about anything, some hustling and cheating, a good cast and a well written plot makes this movie worth watching.

If this was actually presented as a reality show it would be a total disaster. But it is fiction "based on presumed real things some people might actually do" so for that it was at least fun to laugh at. It must have been written by a committee of wannabe writers/producers. What is real is that the concept makes it fun. How many times can two sides run a scam on each other? Many times. It was the only reason to watch this contrived accident. 5 stars is being generous. The fake quips about "what happened after/where are they now" lost at least 3 of their stars.

I thought there might be something worthwhile to see, based on the reviews, so I watched this whole, sorry movie. (at least there were some shots of the desert, which I like :) ) The acting is generally bad, and the plot is just not that believable. They tried to be a combination of "Oceans 11" and maybe "The Hangover", but didn't succeed in providing the entertainment of either. In typical Hollywood fashion, ample F-bombs were included, and a few semi-nudes; neither adding to the plot or value of the movie. Don't waste your time watching this. I can't believe it got funded!

Duke (Vincent Van Patten) has his friendly poker game in his home in the Valley. They are a variety of Hollywood adjacent people. When their game gets robbed, Duke moves it to a higher-class Beverly Hills bar. Poker game shows start blowing up on TV. Duke attracts richer Hollywood types like arrogant director Sebastian (Ross McCall). Duke start making real money until a crooked private investor steals all his money. Sebastian cons him out of more money and steals his game. In frustration, he makes millions dollars bet with Sebastian that he could walk to Vegas in 7 days.

This is supposed to be inspired by true events. It certainly paints a realistic picture of the worst degenerate gamblers. They are ready to bet on anything at any moment. I love that they negotiate a detailed contract on the big bet. It is what degenerate gamblers do. I have to say that the final twist is obvious as soon as Sebastian picks the replacement. That loses the movie a bit at its climatic point. Otherwise, the 7 day bet is pretty compelling.

This Van Patten family project is based on a true incident that happened to star Vincent Van Patten back in the 90s. He did actually make a bert he could walk from Los Angeles to Las Vegas in 7 days. vince wrote the script allegedly based on some Hollywood characters he knew. They must have been some colorful bunch.

That's the strength of 7 Days To Vegas, the colorful characters that creator Vince Van Patten drew. The film is structured a whole lot like the Martin Scorsese classic Casino. As that is a real favorite of mine I couldn't help but like 7 Days To Vegas.

The villain of the piece is Ross McCall a full of himself director with a big bankroll who likes to take chances. He doesn't have even surface likability, but the money keeps people hanging on and he's a good gambler.

The climax belongs to brother James Van Patten. I won't say more, you have to see it to believe it.

This is one good enjoyable almost caper like film.