'For Love or Money' was a fun watch as a poker fan, but you got to know upfront it's light fare from start to end. As you watch / follow faces that have had documented success at the game it's selling the dream of poker hard. I'm not saying any documentary in the realm of gambling has to have a dark, negative side to be taken seriously but you have to consider that not everyone wins or becomes a success story. 10,043 people put up 10k each last year to play the WSOP ME and only 1507 made the money. You do the math.

I can't tell you exactly what I'm look for when I watch a poker doc, but I'm obviously tuning in to see elements of the game and maybe an insightful presentation. The best thing going on here is showcasing the mental strength, fortitude (and luck) players have to have for success playing cards for a living. Making the right moves, all about timing, keeping your emotions in check, etc. Thru the ups and downs of these guys playing in live tournaments it gives a picture to players and nonplayers alike of the toll, grind it can be.

Chris Leong & Stanley Lee are the chosen focus who I wasn't familiar, but 2017 ME champ Scott Blumstein has a spot too. Much like most of this doc, everything he says is purely positive whenever it's about this game, his massive win or life experiences. 'For Love or Money' isn't deep stuff. I can't overstate how much of a love letter it is to poker - title cards tell you how great the two main men are still doing during the end credits - and it plays up the ridiculous poker awards, but it made for a decent one time watch.

'For Love or Money' was a fun watch as a poker fan, but you got to know upfront it's light fare from start to end. As you watch / follow faces that have had documented success at the game it's selling the dream of poker hard. I'm not saying any documentary in the realm of gambling has to have a dark, negative side to be taken seriously but you have to consider that not everyone wins or becomes a success story. 10,043 people put up 10k each last year to play the WSOP ME and only 1507 made the money. You do the math.

I can't tell you exactly what I'm look for when I watch a poker doc, but I'm obviously tuning in to see elements of the game and maybe an insightful presentation. The best thing going on here is showcasing the mental strength, fortitude (and luck) players have to have for success playing cards for a living. Making the right moves, all about timing, keeping your emotions in check, etc. Thru the ups and downs of these guys playing in live tournaments it gives a picture to players and nonplayers alike of the toll grind it can be.

Chris Leong & Stanley Lee are the chosen focus who I wasn't familiar, but then again we aren't following huge names. 2017 ME champ Scott Blumstein has a spot here, but much like most of this documentary everything he says is purely positive whenever it's about this game, his massive win or life experiences. 'For Love or Money' isn't deep stuff and I can't overstate how much of a love letter it is to poker - title cards tell you how great the two main men are still doing during the end credits, it plays up the ridiculous poker awards - but it made for a decent one time watch.