According to authors Michael Kaplan and Greg Reagan, an unnamed source close to Stu Ungar said that the famed poker players last moments included copious amounts of crack and a couple of hookers. Ironically, these two things are the only thing that could make watching the film about Mr. Ungar, “High Roller -- The Stu Ungar Story” a remotely pleasant experience. If Stu had not mysteriously passed away in his hotel room in 1998, this movie might have finished him off. Stu’s life was one badly lived, and a tragedy looking for someplace to happen, but did the movie have to follow his example?
First of all, Stu Ungar was a poker player, this is how he became famous, and in the long run this is what he will ultimately be remembered for. Not only was he a poker player, but he was an exceptionally good one. He had won a total of five World Series of Poker bracelets, three of them being Main Event victories. With his poker success being a well established fact, this movie was extremely light on his poker exploits. The movie “The Waterboy” had a better football to story ratio then this movie about one of the greatest poker players ever.
Yes, we get it, Stu was a drug user and liked hookers. If you want to watch a good movie about addicts and their lifestyle, I would suggest “Trainspotting”. Too much of this movie was dedicated to Mr. Ungar hanging out in dingy hotel rooms with menacing and sleazy acquaintances who share very little in common with the WSOP champ outside of his love of drugs. Its not that this is a bad movie about Stu Ungar; it is just a bad movie. Unless you have figured out how to get lost time back, don’t invest any of your precious free time in this film.
