Issue date: 4/1/08 Section: Aggielife

The film's biggest problem is that it wasn't the result of pure creativity. "21" is the film adaptation of "Bringing Down the House," a nonfiction book by Ben Mezrich. Director Robert Luketic took an opportunity to break away from his previous light-hearted comedies like "Monster-in-Law" and "Legally Blonde," but he didn't stray far enough from his roots. In a comedy about a ditzy sorority girl who goes to Harvard, a lack of realism is intentional and necessary. But in a story based on real people, such as "21," some sense of reality could've been useful.

Despite opposition from uppity critics, "21" is nothing but enjoyable as long as viewers don't take it too seriously. Escaping in a theater to imagine that the illogical and unreasonable could be possible can be entertaining, especially for upper level physics or calculus students. It would be nice to think that the basic math from middle school could be 10 times more profitable in a casino than a doctorate in organic chemistry.

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