Collider- I have some theories regarding Lay the Favorite. I believe screenwriter D.V. DeVincentis was partly paying attention to the script, partly paying attention to ESPN, and mostly paying attention to soft-core porn. The talented actress Rebecca Hall must have had her brain switched with adult film star Katie Morgan. And the director Stephen Frears can’t be the same one who directed High Fidelity, The Queen, and The Grifters. There must be a different director who is also named Stephen Frears, but who is also far less talented. These theories are the only way to explain why Lay the Favorite is so freaking terrible.
Clickonline writes: "Hall has been making a name for herself with strong female roles in The Town and The Awakening and throws that all away here with an overtly sexualised caricature, complete with a dodgy American accent, high pitched tones and lashings of exposed flesh. It’s a role that’s utterly beneath the talented actress and likely not one that the author would be all that happy with either. Why? Well because Beth, as played in the film, is an absolute moron."
The Collider Writes:
We’ve received a press release announcing that Stephen Frears’ adaptation of the Beth Raymer’s memoir Lay the Favorite wrapped principal photography today. The release includes the first official synopsis of the film and there are (unsurprisingly) some variations from the book. While the book covers Raymer’s rise through the ranks of sports gambling, the movie apparently adds romantic entanglements and drama that, going by the synopsis, seems awfully forced. But with Frears at the helm and a cast that features Rebecca Hall, Bruce Willis, Joshua Jackson, and Catherine Zeta-Jones, I’m still interested in seeing this flick.
