Starring Kevin Spacey, Jim Sturgess, Kate Bosworth, and Laurence Fishburne. Rated PG.

Loosely based on Ben Mezrich’s book Bringing Down the House, 21 is inspired by the true story of a bunch of college math geeks who were trained by a Svengali-like professor to win millions at Las Vegas blackjack tables. As luck would have it, I saw the movie shortly after four mind-numbing days of my own in Vegas. So although the script may take a few liberties with Mezrich’s fascinating book, I can vouch for director Robert Luketic nailing the calculated atmosphere. It’s slick, seductive, and packed with the kind of fun your mother always warned you about.

Hard-core blackjack devotees may resent that the brilliant system credited to MIT math prof Micky Rosa (played with creepy charisma by coproducer Kevin Spacey) is glossed over in favour of a script that’s part morality tale and part love story. But what drives 21 are the winning performances.

Leading man Jim Sturgess, best known for Across the Universe, shows that he has more than enough big-screen appeal to stick around for a while. He plays Ben Campbell, a brilliant student desperate to earn big bucks so he can attend Harvard medical school. The strait-laced Ben is initially skeptical of taking on the casinos, but he’s drawn in by Jill Taylor (Kate Bosworth), a blackjack-playing hottie who knows that Ben’s phenomenal memory will be an invaluable asset to the team. It doesn’t take long for sparks to fly between Ben and Jill.

The real juice here comes from the complex relationship between Ben and Micky, which reeks of greed, manipulation, and betrayal. But the thrills seep through like sweat on a hundred-dollar shirt.