Archive: Keswick Film Festival

Saturday 23rd February 9:15 PM - Alhambra

Owning Mahowny

Director: Richard Kwietniowski Country: UK
Cert: 15 Year: 2003 Length: 104 mins

2013 Festival

Book Tickets

Audience Reaction

Score: 70.3% Attendance: 158

Links

Official Site

John Hurt introduces one of his lesser known films. Philip Seymour Hoffman adds another great performance to his gallery in Owning Mahowny, an engrossing comedy-drama about the perils of compulsive gambling. As Toronto bank-loan manager Dan Mahowny, Hoffman brings fresh depth and tortured humanity to his portrayal of a man helplessly feeding his pathological need to gamble with millions in embezzled bank money - money he can't afford to lose. A delicate balance of humour, adrenaline, and escalating tension fuel this modern-day tale of obsession.

Thanks to Momentum.

Critics

The terrific concentration Hoffman brings to the part, his bi-play with Hurt, and the emerging presence of Driver as a woman whose love for a man remains undiminished go a long way to hold attention through a dauntingly elliptical plot.