1/5 stars
No More Bets attempts to spin these stories into an edge-of-your-seat thriller and the results are, in more ways than one, horrifying.
The film, from director Shen Ao and producer Ning Hao, follows a number of characters who are drawn into the devious web of criminal overlord Lu (Eric Wang Chuanjun), a gun-toting wannabe Jordan Belfort.
During an inexplicable layover in a Southeast Asian hellhole that resembles a chaotic entanglement of Macau and Myanmar, Pan is kidnapped and taken to a remote cyber farm, where hundreds of poor souls are being forced to work at gunpoint in a sweatshop-cum-prison camp.
Now she lures in hapless gambling addicts like Tian (Darren Wang Da-lu), whose unquenchable habit is steadily ruining the lives of those around him.
When a scene in which a house cat is ruthlessly murdered triggers a ripple of derisive laughter in the audience, it might be some indication that the film has failed to find its intended tone.
There is no denying this subject matter is deeply concerning. Online scamming has become an unavoidable epidemic, while smartphones have made us all vulnerable to both attack and temptation.
No More Bets, however, takes an idiotic approach to addressing the problem, propelled by histrionic scaremongering and xenophobia before leaning into some unintentionally hilarious championing of the Chinese police force.
The closing credits alone reveal the extent of the earnest and thorough research conducted by the filmmakers, as dozens of real victims recount their ordeals.
Perhaps a documentary investigating their stories might have yielded more authentic results, although one suspects it would not have been nearly as financially rewarding.
The film’s messages ring loud and clear: do not gamble! Do not trust anyone you meet online! Do not believe promises of high-paying overseas employment! Do not go abroad! Do not answer the phone! But if this writer may add to that list … do not watch this movie!