The Poker House The Poker House

Actress Lori Petty makes her directorial debut with this poignant, beautifully crafted film about a teenage girl trying to survive the dismal circumstances of her life with dignity, humor, and basketball.

Jennifer Lawrence Selma Blair Bokeem Woodbine Chloë Grace Moretz Sophia Bairley Casey Tutton Jayce Ryan Natalie West David Alan Grier Andrew Rothenberg Danielle Campbell Clarke Peters

indie drama

93 mins   More details at IMDb / TMDb

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  • Steve Norwood

    Review by Steve Norwood ★★★

    (NET)

    Either one of the kookiest dramas (or quirkiest comedies punctuated by a not-unexpected bit of ugliness) I've seen lately, THE POKER HOUSE makes itself comfortable in a sort of white trash haven. It begins by introducing its many below-the-poverty-line characters: artistic 14-year-old Agnes (Jennifer Lawrence, powerful even 2 years before WINTER'S BONE), who is clearly a stand-in for writer/producer/director Lori Petty; her younger sisters Bee (Sophia Bairley) and Cammie (Chloe Grace Moretz, here coming across like an Our Gang moppet); their equally pathetic and loathsome whore of a mother (Selma Blair, unrecognizable for most of her first scene); and a slick pimp (Bokeem Woodbine) who has his eyes on Agnes. There's also co-writer/co-producer David Alan Grier as an amusingly…

  • Heather Silvey

    Review by Heather Silvey ★★★★★ 3

    From the same vein as 'Blue Car', 'White Oleander', 'Hick', 'Speak', 'Welcome to the Dollhouse', 'Girl in Progress', 'Running With Scissors', and 'Thirteen'. Life is tough. Especially when you're a girl on the verge of womanhood and the only one looking after you is you. Great acting all around. The cast really made the characters come to life. Incredible performance delivered by the very talented Jennifer Lawrence and Selma Blair! But I'm left wondering what happened when Agnes came home that night...

  • Eli

    Review by Eli ★★★½

    Wow, Jennifer Lawrence was amazing in this. I think if you watch this movie for nothing else, you should watch it for her performance. Chloë Grace Moretz was absolutely adorable and David Allen Grier was great as usual.

  • Tyler Foster

    Review by Tyler Foster ★★½

    Audio commentary by director/co-writer Lori Petty.

  • Tyler Foster

    Review by Tyler Foster ★★½

    A drama directed/co-written by Lori Petty and co-written by David Alan Grier. Marks the first Jennifer Lawrence performance I saw, almost a year ahead of Winter's Bone, with a deadbeat mom (Selma Blair) instead of a deadbeat dad. Nothing special, but Lawrence is just as good here as she is in Bone.