The Music of Chance based upon Paul Auster's absurdist novel is one of those little movies which makes the audience believe that it was made just for them.
The tale of ex-fireman Nache and his random meeting with card-sharp Pozzi; found bloody and battered by the side of the road, is endlessly engaging as it is intriguing.
Pozzi dressed like a 70s magic act, powder blue suit and white shoes, delivers a machine gun monologue about how he was robbed of his stake money for a big time poker game. Nache, wonderfully understated simply replies "Did you?" when Pozzi explains how his fellow players, "True blue American assholes" thought that he set them up. It is this unlikely friendship which centres the piece and their dialogue between one another is delivered with a poetic genius.
Nache fronts Pozzi his stake almost on a whim so that he can play poker with two super rich eccentrics, Flowers and Stone. This other unlikely double act reminds the audience of Laurel and Hardy,… more »

The Music of Chance based upon Paul Auster's absurdist novel is one of those little movies which makes the audience believe that it was made just for them.
The tale of ex-fireman Nache and his random meeting with card-sharp Pozzi; found bloody and battered by the side of the road, is endlessly engaging as it is intriguing.
Pozzi dressed like a 70s magic act, powder blue suit and white shoes, delivers a machine gun monologue about how he was robbed of his stake money for a big time poker game. Nache, wonderfully understated simply replies "Did you?" when Pozzi explains how his fellow players, "True blue American assholes" thought that he set them up. It is this unlikely friendship which centres the piece and their dialogue between one another is delivered with a poetic genius.
Nache fronts Pozzi his stake almost on a whim so that he can play poker with two super rich eccentrics, Flowers and Stone. This other unlikely double act reminds the audience of Laurel and Hardy, not the actors themselves but the characters they play-but now fabulously wealthy and slightly unhinged as if years of failure and ridicule have finally taken their toll.
When they announce to a startled Pozzi they have had Poker lessons you can almost imagine Flowers twidling his tie with delight Oliver Hardy style. Infact the resemblance continues when Stone is described as a genius by his friend for the intricate but insane model of his life he has created. Laurel was often cited as the genius of the comedy duo and Stone plays him as a glasses wearing mastermind.
It is in defeat and victory that we find out the real personalities of the opposing partnerships. Defeat reveals a tender friendship between Pozzi and Nache, a warmth that can only be found in a plutonic male relationship. They have to build a wall to which has very little purpose other than to settle their debt and cement their friendship. However, the wall also reveals how petty and dangerous Flowers and Stone are. They are removed from the action and are replaced by another duo, Calvin and his grandson, redneck overseers who twist the knife for their masters, without understanding the logic of their increasingly cruel insructions.
The climax is unexpected and cyclicar, perfectly fitting in with the tone of this enigmatic and intelligent piece of art. But deep down it is a simple movie which is a treasure to watch and share. Highly recommended.