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Hard Eight (Special Edition) [DVD]

John Reilly (Actor), Gwyneth Paltrow (Actor), Paul Anderson (Director) Rated:
R
Format: DVD
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 403 ratings
IMDb7.1/10.0
$19.99
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DVD
June 26, 2003
Special Edition
2
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Hard Eight $3.99 $16.29
Genre Crime
Format Closed-captioned, DVD, Subtitled, Dolby, Widescreen, Anamorphic, Full Screen, NTSC, Color
Contributor Robert Jones, Paul Anderson, Philip Seymour Hoffman, John Lyons, Samuel Jackson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Green Parrot; Green Parrot Productions; Rysher Entertainment; Trinity Productions, John Reilly, Philip Baker Hall See more
Language English
Runtime 1 hour and 41 minutes
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Product Description

Product Description

Sydney (Philip Baker Hall - Midnight Run ) is a poker-faced professional gambler with a soft heart for a hard luck story. He plays guardian angel to unlucky John (John C. Reilly - Days of Thunder) and a hooker, Clementine (Gwyneth Paltrow - Seven), whom he grows to love like family. When John's andClementine's honeymoon night leads to a disastrous hostage situation, Sydney takes care of it, as usual. But when slick casino pro Jimmy (Samuel L. Jackson - Pulp Fiction) threatens to reveal a secret from Sydney's past that could destroy his relationship with the newlyweds, Sydney decides to hedgehis bets and not leave anything to chance.

Amazon.com

Before hitting the big time with his second film Boogie Nights, young filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson impressed critics with this deftly conceived, low-budget film noir chamber piece. With its minimalist plot, deliberate pacing, and brief, but shocking bursts of violence, Hard Eight won't please everyone, but Anderson and his first-rate cast were clearly working on the same authentic wavelength. It's a mystery at first why a solemn professional gambler (Philip Baker Hall in a captivating performance) cares for a down-and-out loser (John C. Reilly) and a dimwit, Reno cocktail waitress (Gwyneth Paltrow). But his motivations become clear--and the movie packs a quietly effective punch--when the gambler faces blackmail by a small-time crook (Samuel L. Jackson). This unheralded film seemed like a closely kept secret itself, until it showed up on the 1997 top-10 lists of several prominent critics. In tandem with Boogie Nights, it marked the arrival of a new filmmaker whose talent is as impressive as that of that other '90s hotshot, Quentin Tarantino. --Jeff Shannon

Product details

  • Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 2.35:1, 1.33:1
  • Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
  • MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
  • Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.75 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches; 4 ounces
  • Director ‏ : ‎ Paul Anderson
  • Media Format ‏ : ‎ Closed-captioned, DVD, Subtitled, Dolby, Widescreen, Anamorphic, Full Screen, NTSC, Color
  • Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 41 minutes
  • Release date ‏ : ‎ June 26, 2003
  • Actors ‏ : ‎ John Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel Jackson, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman
  • Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English, Spanish
  • Producers ‏ : ‎ Robert Jones, John Lyons
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
  • Studio ‏ : ‎ Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00000K3D3
  • Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 2
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 403 ratings

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
403 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

ALBERT B. ROSSI II 9
5.0 out of 5 stars Never Ignore a Man's Courtesy
Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2024
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Starts in a Diner , Ends in a Diner , Modern film Noir , every Actor in this Piece is at the Top of there Performance Ability .
Beware the Fury of a Patient Man
John Dryden -
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Tom G.
4.0 out of 5 stars Hard Eight is a risky proposition bet, but it can be done.
Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2016
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I saw this movie when first released almost 20 years ago, and was both surprised and favorably impressed. The second time around I was not let down in the least. Very few movies lead with a 65 year old character actor, which is an immediate attention getter. Philip Baker Hall plays Sydney, a world weary professional gambler who makes just a basic living. Divorced, alone and alienated from his children, Sydney takes on John C. Reilly as John, an unlikely partner and as someone with whom he has an affinity as the son he never had. Events unravel quickly, however, when John
gets involved with a casino employee and part time hooker Clementine, portrayed by Gwyneth Paltrow, whom he eventually marries. Due to a series of events, Hall finds himself blackmailed by Jimmy, a hood played by Samuel Jackson and threatened with a painful exposure from his past.
Certainly by professional gambler standards, Sydney is a courteous, just and upright man. He seeks to help and protect those close to him, and will do so even if he must resort to extreme measures. In other words, underestimate him at your peril. What I like most about this movie is how Anderson directed what might seemingly be a basic, pedestrian plot and raised it to a higher level. The actors make the most of this average material and turn in credible, effective performances. Watching it for a second time, I cannot help but believe that the movie turned out better than any of them expected. To their credit they made it happen, and from me they get four stars.
7 people found this helpful
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Diana
5.0 out of 5 stars Paul Thomas Andersonnever disappoints.
Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2024
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His stuff has gotten a lot better now but still enjoyed it.
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Billy Bones
5.0 out of 5 stars great solid film.
Reviewed in the United States on July 18, 2019
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I first picked this up years ago on VHS and still have it. It is one of my favorite films, and I still stop and watch it if it is on TV. but it is great to be able to catch it here on Amazon now. The script is really good. the acting is spot on.
the story is about the bound between a young man who needs some guidance when he has no hope, and a man who has plenty to give. One, a young man who lost everything trying to win enough money to bury his Mother, and the other, a smart and wise old gambler who knows the ropes in Vegas and Reno and sees the younger mans pain so offers to help. Their relationship grows from there, and over a couple of years they form a Father and Son type bound.
One person found this helpful
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EmasterG
5.0 out of 5 stars PTA
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2022
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What else can we say about Paul Thomas Anderson that hasn't been said? But besides the amazing writing and direction in this movie, the performances are incredible, the photography/camera work amazing, the editing is subtle but great. This movie hasn't all. I've seen it a couple of times already. Never gets me boring.
One person found this helpful
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Ender Wiggin, FLTADM (ret)
1.0 out of 5 stars Standards are dead
Reviewed in the United States on September 26, 2021
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It's insulting that anyone marketed this as a feature film. Certainly the director agrees with me, since he was fired halfway through so the producers could butcher not only the content but the title.

Reading the story of Coffee & Cigarettes, PTA's original student film, everything makes much more sense. This was a student film that had budget thrown at it to be increased to feature length. Faint traces of a deeper story are visible, but it's clear the producers/replacement hacks didn't understand it and reverted it to a student film obscenely padded out for time.

Don't let reviews that talk about suspense or slow buildup fool you. This is 100% an artifact of padding 30 minutes worth of story into feature length.

The storytelling is incredibly lazy. Why does Sydney care in the first place? Guilt? There's zero foreshadowing of that. John literally talks about burying his mother, and Syd does not react with the flicker of complicated emotion (even if he already knew) that would be natural in this situation... you know if the various parts of the movie actually had any kind of connection.

Why does Clem act lovey-dovey towards John the first time they're on screen together? Are we just supposed to believe in love at first sight? Again we're required to assume an awful lot, and a lot of those assumptions are contradictory and fly in the face of real man-woman dynamics. Clem refers to John as Syd's puppy; in real life women don't like men they don't respect.

Why does Clementine have the persona/affect of a drug addict most of the time? I have a feeling this was a part of PTA's story that was cut, with some scenes recycled. It would actually explain one of the most glaring plot holes, the 'kidnappee.'

There is zero explanation of why Clem would ditch John on their wedding day to turn a trick. Again the audience has to make a massive number of assumptions: she's really crazy, she's an addict, there's some kind of prior relationship... something? Anything? Nope, just crickets.

And of course, from that weak turn of the story, flows the completely artificial insertion of Jimmy (Samuel L. Hack). Sorry Sammy, you overacted this one.

There are way too many throwaway lines and assumptions. The plot on this one resembles Swiss cheese. The characters actually don't have personalities. Name one (non-work) interest any of the characters have? Beware a movie where the universal interest is cigarettes, that's a sign that they both put little thought into the characters and needed to pad out the runtime.

And... why does Syd only have $6000 to his name at the end? It jars the audience out of any remaining suspension of disbelief.

Oh yes, and the entire kidnapping plot is so farcical that it falls flat on its face. Once I stopped being angry at the characters for being unrealistically stupid, I grew angry at the entire film crew for creating a farcically stupid situation so that the audience would get pissed at the stupidity of everyone but Syd.

Quentin Tarantino obviously watched this and realized its potential, because he stole around half of it and made a great movie (Pulp Fiction) out of it.
5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Beetleypete
5.0 out of 5 stars American Indie at it's best
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 5, 2012
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This almost unknown film is a complete gem. The cast is nothing short of excellent, especially Philip Baker Hall in the lead role, as the wise and weary gambler. I won't add any plot spoilers, as I don't like them in reviews. However, if you are a fan of the genre, if you liked 'The Grifters', and similar films, you will not be disappointed. I saw this film on TV and liked it so much I bought two copies, one to send to a friend who agreed with me about this under the radar classic. Don't expect action and gun fights, this is a thoughtful film, with a superb script, and standout performances from a fantastic cast.
One person found this helpful
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Robert Williamson
5.0 out of 5 stars but it was a very comfortable film to watch
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 24, 2015
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I don't know what it is, but it was a very comfortable film to watch. Very simple but very good. Films don't need to be complicated or exciting to watch. They just need to be made by someone who knows what their doing, and P T Anderson definitely does.
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SeanO
5.0 out of 5 stars Disavowed First PTA Film
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 24, 2019
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Great story and amazing turn from Phillip Baker Hall make this worthy of watching over and over.
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georges
5.0 out of 5 stars the dvd came through quickly in very good condition.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 9, 2018
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an interesting movie about american gambling as a away of life. the dvd came through quickly in very good condition.
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stefan adler
3.0 out of 5 stars This absolute favourite director Paul Thomas Anderson's first
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 4, 2016
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This absolute favourite director Paul Thomas Anderson's first. And you can actually trace the greatness to come. Great acting.
Read Roger Eberts review of it. Another guy who knew his trade:
[...]
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