Paul Schrader has spent decades refining his signature brand of introspective, tormented protagonists, and The Card Counter is yet another gripping addition to his filmography. Released in 2021, the movie is a slow-burning, nihilistic descent into guilt, redemption, and the inescapability of past sins. While it shares DNA with First Reformed (2018) and later Master Gardener (2023), The Card Counter carves out its own distinct space as a haunting meditation on trauma and retribution, anchored by a career-best performance from Oscar Isaac.
Isaac plays William Tell, an ex-military interrogator turned professional gambler, drifting between casinos with a hyper-disciplined, methodical approach to card counting. His world is muted, drained of color and emotion, and he seems content to operate in the shadows, never drawing too much attention. But his carefully constructed existence begins to unravel when two outsiders disrupt his routine—La Linda (Tiffany Haddish), a gambling financier who sees potential in his talents, and Cirk (Tye Sheridan), a young man consumed by revenge. Cirk’s target? Gordo, a former military superior played with eerie detachment by Willem Dafoe, whose actions left both Cirk’s father and William permanently scarred.
Schrader’s direction is as restrained and detached as its protagonist. The film’s aesthetic mirrors Tell’s monotonous existence—endless dimly lit casino floors, dingy motel rooms, and barren landscapes. There’s nothing flashy or romantic about this world, just a bleak, isolating loop of card games, small victories, and repressed memories. That mundanity is where The Card Counter thrives, creating an atmosphere thick with dread and inevitable tragedy.
Isaac’s performance is nothing short of mesmerizing. Beneath Tell’s stoic facade, there’s an ocean of barely contained rage and regret. He moves with precision, his emotions tightly coiled, yet every so often, the weight of his past surfaces in small, devastating moments. Haddish, stepping out of her usual comedic comfort zone, brings warmth and levity to an otherwise suffocating film, while Sheridan’s wounded performance as Cirk adds another layer of moral complexity.
On rewatch, The Card Counter only deepens in its impact. Schrader’s script, laced with biting critiques of American militarism and a warped sense of patriotism, is unapologetically bleak but never preachy. From the garish poker players draped in American flags to the haunting memories of wartime atrocities, the film delivers its critique with a quiet, simmering intensity.
Schrader has often explored the psychology of men trapped by their pasts, from Taxi Driver to Light Sleeper, and The Card Counter feels like a natural extension of that lineage. It’s a film that lingers—methodical, unrelenting, and quietly devastating. Perhaps not his flashiest work, but unquestionably one of his most powerful late-career efforts.
Score: 8/10
The Card Counter (2021)
- Cast: Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan, Willem Dafoe
- Director: Paul Schrader
- Genre: Drama, Thriller
- Runtime: 111 minutes
- Rated: R
- Release Date: September 10, 2021
More Movies Directed by Paul Schrader
Paul Schrader has directed the following movies:
- Blue Collar (1978)
- Hardcore (1979)
- American Gigolo (1980)
- Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
- Light Sleeper (1992)
- Touch (1997)
- First Reformed (2018)
- The Card Counter (2021)
- Master Gardener (2022)
- Oh, Canada (2024)
More Movies Starring Oscar Isaac
Oscar Isaac has starred in the following movies:
- Drive (2011)
- Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
- A Most Violent Year (2014)
- Ex Machina (2015)
- Triple Frontier (2019)
- The Card Counter (2021)
- Dune: Part One (2021)
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)