No ace in the hole

There is such a thing of too much of a good thing. In "Smokin' Aces," director Joe Carnahan tries to make a movie too cool for its own good, overloading it with big-name actors, characters and their agendas. \nMovies like "Snatch" have been successful at developing several characters while still having you feel connected to them. But in "Smokin' Aces," the characters are not developed properly, leaving you disconnected to the characters and story. Without any attachment to the characters, you are unsure whom to root for. Even the story's hero, Ryan Reynolds, does not take lead and the most developed characters, the lady hunters Georgia Sykes (Alicia Keys) and Sharice Watters (Taraji Henson), are the least important to the plot.\n"Smokin' Aces" revolves around Vegas magician Buddy Israel (Jeremy Piven), who has information important to a crime boss, putting a million-dollar price tag on his head. \nThis attracts a slew of bounty hunters trying to kill Buddy in his penthouse suite in Lake Tahoe. Then there is the FBI, led by Agents Messner (Ryan Reynolds) and Carruthers (Ray Liotta), who are on the case and seek to arrest Buddy. There are also a few bounty hunters trying to capture Buddy for his heart for reasons unexplained until the movie's twist. So this leads all of the characters in a race up to Buddy's penthouse, protected by Buddy's cronies, to claim what they want. This plays out like your typical shootout movie, ultimately ending in a twist not big enough for the effort put in.\nNot only is the story hollow, but with a list of big names, it's surprising the acting is unconvincing. Veterans like Liotta and Andy Garcia are not on the screen long enough to leave an impression, and the others, like rapper Common, are over-the-top and not credible. One exception to this rule, however, is newcomer Alicia Keys, whose movie debut shows great promise. The movie's biggest highlight is pathetic lawyer Rip Reed, played by Jason Bateman, who is far and away the most amusing character in the movie.\nFortunately, the excess spills over to the extra features. The DVD includes deleted scenes, outtakes, commentary and a lot of good behind-the-scenes footage. So for those who enjoyed "Smokin' Aces" in theaters, this would be a good DVD buy. Otherwise, stay away. It's no ace in the hole.