In Flutter, an obsessive gambler named John, played by Joe Anderson, takes a tip from his dentist and wins big at the dog track. What strikes him as odd about this is his normal bookie Stan has been replaced by a flirtatious blond woman. He thinks his luck has changed for the better, but soon John discovers that things are not as they seem and he may loose more than his billfold.
Flutter tries to deliver an edgy and dark comedy based off the premise of a gambler getting in over his head when bets start affecting his life beyond money. The antagonist of the film, played by Anna Anissmova, is a woman that gets under John’s skin from the moment she is introduced. The characters in the film all seem connected to this female bookie named Stan in one way or another; and by the end of it, we are left to wonder what the point is.
John is a normal guy with normal friends who like to meet up at the dog track for fun. He lives an average life with his wife, and his core value is to never lie to her. When he starts to lose all his money after winning big one night, he gets involved in betting on dares and unconventional and sometimes dangerous agreements. When the lives of his loved ones are jeopardized by this, he has to reevaluate his situation and possibly lay his life and his soul on the line.
Flutter suffers from a poor narrative and script, and comes off as uninteresting and forced. The film features mixed performances from it’s lead actors, but no delivery is notable or engaging. Billy Zane and British actor Mark Williams make appearances that bring a bit of levity to the grim tone of the film, but otherwise Flutter fails to come off as entertaining. This one had potential to have fun with its premise and wound up feeling flat with an especially weak ending.
Hawkins’ Rating: 
Out of a Possible 5 Stars
