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Lay the Favorite

Play trailer Poster for Lay the Favorite R 2012 1h 34m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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18% Tomatometer 50 Reviews 19% Popcornmeter 2,500+ Ratings
A former stripper's (Rebecca Hall) talent with numbers lands her a job with a professional gambler (Bruce Willis) who runs a sports book in Las Vegas.
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Lay the Favorite

Lay the Favorite

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Critics Consensus

A clumsy misstep for director Stephen Frears, Lay the Favorite puts all its chips on endearing quirk only to go bust.

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Critics Reviews

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Kyle Smith New York Post 12/07/2012
2.5/4
Frears has a lot of fun with the bad tempers and high spirits of this crew of adrenaline junkies, and though the story falls a little flat, the script is sprinkled with dry wit. Go to Full Review Mick LaSalle San Francisco Chronicle 12/07/2012
3/4
"Lay the Favorite" is a small and not particularly ambitious movie, but it's pleasing and exceptionally well made. Go to Full Review Betsy Sharkey Los Angeles Times 12/06/2012
1/5
What has happened to director Stephen Frears? Go to Full Review Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com 07/08/2019
0.5/5
Broad, flat, lugubrious, the worst example of filmmaking that exists. Go to Full Review Joseph Walsh CineVue 08/23/2018
2/5
Despite the combination of bankable actors, a talented screenwriter and a fine director, Lay the Favourite is woefully disappointing. Go to Full Review David Nusair Reel Film Reviews 03/30/2018
2/4
The degree to which Lay the Favorite fizzles out is ultimately nothing short of devastating... Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Alex S 01/02/2025 Great movie! The most realistic gambling movie I’ve ever seen. Makes sense, since it’s a true story written by the main character. Love this movie See more Steve D 10/18/2023 Not a whole lot to like with this story. See more jelisije j @jjosifovic 12/06/2022 A really good movie about a young girl who moves to las vegas and learns the value of money, love, friendship, and gambling. See more Krzysztof P 04/30/2022 Nudny. Słabe aktorstwo. Fabuła z czapy, uprawianie hazardu jako sposób na sensowny biznes, głupiutka bohaterka See more barry m 01/08/2022 Too "inside" for most moviegoers to follow, this gambling mishmash isn't helped by an over-the-top performance by Rebecca Hall. I'm still not sure if this is a comedy (not funny) or a character study (unfocused). Either way, you can probably survive life without it. See more 08/18/2019 What in the name of all star cast failure is this?! I'm very disappointed in Mr. Willis' decision to commit to such a brain cell loss of a movie. Young and ditzy (anonymous) lead actress becomes a pro gambler while glorifying the adultery of stealing another woman's (Catherine Zeta Jones) husband ...Jones' sad reaction? - Get a facelift! Gotta combat the negative lifestyle changes that a woman goes through leaving her prime. *eye roll* Positive note - you get to see Donna topless. See more Read all reviews
Lay the Favorite

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Cast & Crew

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Stephen Frears

Director

Bruce Willis

Dink Heimowitz

Rebecca Hall

Beth Raymer

Catherine Zeta-Jones

Tulip Heimowitz

Vince Vaughn

Rosie

Joshua Jackson

Jeremy

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Movie Info

Synopsis A former stripper's (Rebecca Hall) talent with numbers lands her a job with a professional gambler (Bruce Willis) who runs a sports book in Las Vegas.
Director
Stephen Frears
Producer
Anthony Bregman, D.V. DeVincentis, Randall Emmett, George Furla, Paul Trijbits
Screenwriter
D.V. DeVincentis
Distributor
Radius TWC
Production Co
Lipsync Productions, Random House Films, Ruby Films, Wild Bunch, Emmett/Furla Films, Likely Story
Rating
R (Language Throughout|Brief Drug Use|Nudity|Some Sexual Content)
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 7, 2012, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 10, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$21.0K
Runtime
1h 34m
Sound Mix
Datasat, SDDS, Dolby Digital
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