• Crime
• Drama
• Mystery
• Thriller

Ballad of a Small Player 2025

Ballad of a Small Player (2025) is a British psychological thriller film directed by Edward Berger (known for All Quiet on the Western Front and Conclave) and written by Rowan Joffé, based on the 2014 novel by Lawrence Osborne. The film is set against the visually arresting, neon-drenched backdrop of Macau's gambling world. It premiered at the 52nd Telluride Film Festival and was released in select cinemas before its streaming debut on Netflix on October 29, 2025. The story centers on Lord Doyle (played by Colin Farrell), a disgraced former lawyer turned compulsive gambler, who is laying low in Macau to escape mounting debts and his past misdeeds, including a theft. Doyle, an increasingly desperate and alcoholic antihero, is constantly at the baccarat tables, wagering what little he has left and wrestling with his deteriorating reality. He is offered a lifeline by Dao Ming (Fala Chen), an enigmatic casino employee with secrets of her own, who sees a "lost soul" in him. Simultaneously, Doyle is pursued by Cynthia Blithe (Tilda Swinton), a relentless private investigator who arrives in Macau to confront him about the money he is running from. The film follows Doyle's intense and increasingly hallucinatory quest for redemption as his past catches up to him and the city of Macau becomes a labyrinth of chance, illusion, and moral decay, subtly incorporating themes of the Hungry Ghost Festival. Other key cast members include Deanie Ip as Grandma, a formidable gambler, and Alex Jennings as Adrian Lippett. Read More

• 2025
• 1 h : 41 min
• 122 views
• 5.521
• R