Paul Thomas Anderson’s directorial debut follows Sydney (Philip Baker Hall), a veteran gambler who takes down-on-his-luck young man John Finnegan (John C. Reilly) under his wing and shows him how to wager in the big leagues. The two new friends take their act to Reno, where Finnegan’s feelings for a beautiful cocktail waitress (Gwyneth Paltrow) may lead him to roll the dice one time too many. Samuel L. Jackson and Philip Seymour Hoffman co-star.