Ballad of a Small Player review: Colin Farrell shines in underwhelming thriller
After All Quiet on the Western Front and Conclave – which both made my top 10 of their respective years – I couldn’t wait to see what director Edward Berger made next. Naturally, I had high hopes for Ballad of a Small Player and came away mildly disappointed.
Based on Lawrence Osborne‘s 2014 novel of the same name, Ballad of a Small Player follows Englishman Lord Doyle (Colin Farrell), who is lying low in Macau. Although up to his neck in debt, the addict spends his days trying his luck in the casinos. While most gambling joints have cut him off, one casino employee, Dao Ming (Fala Chen), offers him a lifeline. However, reality starts to catch up with him when private investigator Cynthia (Tilda Swinton) shows up in Macau.
First things first, Ballad of a Small Player looks and sounds incredible. Cinematographer James Friend shoots Macau beautifully and I loved the production design, certain camera movements and Volker Bertelmann‘s prominent score.
But all this style cannot make up for an underwhelming story. Something was missing and it never fully engaged me. I was never able to forge an emotional connection with any of the characters and therefore couldn’t invest in the story. I was really into it at the beginning as the set-up is unique and interesting, but it loses momentum at a certain point and never picks it back up.
Thankfully, Farrell is captivating so I was always into what he was doing, even if I wasn’t fully captured by the story. He is excellent as a desperate, sweaty, gluttonous man who always seems on the verge of a heart attack or mental breakdown. The Lord Doyle persona is a mere disguise and it’s intriguing watching the mask slowly slip.
This psychological thriller is a wild fever dream with another top performance from Farrell. However, Berger never finds the heart and soul of the story, making the movie a big step down from Conclave.
Originally seen at the London Film Festival. Now streaming on Netflix