Ballad of a Small Player (2025)

Dir: Edward Berger

Cast: Colin Farrell, Fala Chen, Deanie Ip, Alex Jennings, Tilda Swinton

It may be all style and no substance, but there is never a dull moment in Edward Berger’s psychological drama, with the over-the-top visuals and Colin Farrell’s electric and incredibly sweaty performance keeping me hooked throughout

One of the most exciting filmmakers to have emerged, rather belatedly, as a standout voice in recent cinema is Swiss-Austrian director Edward Berger, who, despite years of honing his craft on the European circuit, has only gained international recognition in the past couple of years. Although he holds dual Alpine citizenship, Berger’s creative roots run deep in Germany, where he grew up and has made waves for decades with acclaimed television projects, such as the gripping “Deutschland 83”. These successes paved the way for his critically acclaimed debut German feature film, “Jack”, in 2014. He continued to impress with “All My Loving” in 2019, but true industry acclaim would elude the Wolfsburg-born director until 2022.

Berger’s first major foray into mainstream cinema began with a landmark production deal with Netflix, which secured worldwide rights to his adaptation of the iconic anti-war novel “All Quiet on the Western Front”. His haunting and visually arresting retelling marked the third cinematic interpretation of Erich Maria Remarque‘s influential work, following the Oscar-winning American film released one year after the novel’s publication, and the 1979 English-language made-for-television version. Berger’s German-language film garnered widespread praise for its unflinching portrayal of World War I and the tragic exploitation of German youth, whose naivety led them to be thrust into the horrors of the Western Front. The film became a powerhouse during awards season, earning a record-breaking fourteen BAFTA nominations for a foreign-language film, nine Academy Award nods, and was widely regarded as the closest contender to the eventual Best Picture winner, “Everything Everywhere All At Once”.

Yet, despite the avalanche of honours for both Berger and his film, the Academy overlooked his directorial achievements, a stinging omission that would repeat itself a few years later when he was again passed over for his masterful work on the Oscar-winning religious thriller “Conclave”.

“Ballad of a Small Player” Trailer | Netflix

After two near-misses, Berger pulls out all the stops with his latest film, the visually striking “Ballad of a Small Player”. Having done the rounds on the fall festival circuit, I managed to catch up with it following its release on Netflix last week, with the streaming giant once again teaming up with the filmmaker as they look for another award season hit. Adapted from Lawrence Osborne‘s novel of the same name, the film plunges viewers into the vibrant glow of the Far Eastern metropolis Macau, a city that rivals Las Vegas as the world’s premier gambling destination. Here, we meet the hapless Lord Doyle, ingloriously portrayed by an electrifying Colin Farrell, who is drowning in debt and banned from most casinos, his luck and credit both long exhausted.

Driven by mounting desperation, Doyle turns to the mysterious credit broker Dao Ming (Fala Chen), but when his last hopes vanish at the hands of the seemingly mystic, elderly gambler known only as Grandma (Deanie Ip), Doyle and Dao Ming make a frantic escape to Hong Kong, each haunted by shadows from their past.

Although I was somewhat engaged by “Ballad of a Small Player”, I couldn’t help but feel slightly let down, especially considering the high bar set by Berger’s previous films, which rank among my favourites in their respective years. Berger’s directorial flair is on full display, with him and cinematographer James Friend conjuring up dazzling images that capture both the electric glow of Macau’s skyline and the shadowy depths beneath its glittering surface. Yet, unlike “Conclave” or “All Quiet on the Western Front”—the latter earning Friend an Academy Award for his work—the visuals here feel more like a seductive lure than a vessel for deeper meaning. They immerse us in the feverish world of gambling, but rarely reach beyond surface-level allure. Some might say the film is over-directed, perhaps a bold retort to Berger’s repeated Oscar snubs, but strip away the visual spectacle and the story itself feels thin, both in narrative drive and thematic weight.

Though I haven’t read the original novel, it’s clear that screenwriter Rowan Joffe struggles to anchor the film with a consistent motif or tone as we trail Farrell’s slippery gambler. The story explores themes of addiction, retribution, and the mystique of Eastern spirituality, but its message becomes entangled, leaving us uncertain whether to root for the protagonist or watch him spiral into darkness. This lack of focus undermines Farrell’s truly captivating central performance, with the Irish actor delivering an incredibly sweaty and undignified turn that many Hollywood stars would avoid at all costs. It is ultimately Farrell who keeps the film together, and while his character undergoes an underwhelming and convoluted arc, he never fails to captivate in every frame he appears on screen. While the film’s mixed response may lead to him being overlooked by awards bodies, I would argue that it may be one of the strongest performances of the year.

The supporting cast radiates presence, even if their roles mostly serve to amplify the protagonist’s descent. Fala Chan and Deanie Ip bring an enigmatic energy that breathes life into the film’s supernatural undertones, drawing us into its exploration of Asian spiritual beliefs. Meanwhile, Tilda Swinton’s turn as a working-class British private investigator anchors the story with wit and grit – plus there is a surreal mid-credit scene in which she is meme worthy.

Berger reunites with German composer Volker Bertelmann for the film’s score, which, while impressive on its own, never quite syncs with the film’s shifting moods. The music’s intense, discordant notes feel more suited to a high-stakes thriller than the wandering, psychological drama at hand, sometimes pulling the viewer out of the experience. At times, it even sounds like outtakes from Bertelmann’s Oscar-winning work on “All Quiet on the Western Front”. This disconnect is emblematic of the film as a whole: dazzling individual elements that never quite coalesce into a unified vision.

The Verdict:

Although it may fall short in substance and emotional depth, Edward Berger’s psychological drama dazzles with striking visuals, while a magnetic Colin Farrell holds the film together, making “Ballad of a Small Player” an engrossing, if ultimately bittersweet, visual feast.

Ballad of a Small Player is now available to stream on Netflix

Share this:

Leave a comment Cancel reply