More a character study than anything else, the movie is loosely based on the true story of a Toronto bank manager who embezzled $10.2 million in the early 1980s before he was caught.

Hoffman plays Dan Mahowny, a mild-mannered middle-management type who's just gotten a promotion at his bank. A quiet guy, Dan doesn't seem inclined to excess of any kind. But he likes to gamble. Gamble large and gamble lots. He'll bet on anything, from the horses to blackjack. But he loses more than he wins and, to feed his habit, he begins siphoning funds from the accounts he handles.

Dan is all about the spin of the wheel, the rustle of the cards. Hookers, booze, gigantic suites -- the usual perks offered big rollers -- have no interest for him. The only thrill is placing the bet

His extraordinary focus -- and considerable funds -- intrigue Victor Foss (Hurt), who manages Dan's favorite casino in Atlantic City. Foss can't believe that this guy is throwing around a $100,000 bankroll and all he's wants in the way of special treatment is a Coke and a plate of ribs (no sauce).

The relationship between the two is the core of the film. When Foss finds out his boy has gone to Vegas, he turns steely-eyed and orders an underling to find out everything about Dan, from his mother's maiden name to whether he wears boxers or briefs. He knows an addict when he sees one. Dan will keep gambling and keep losing, and Foss wants that happening at his casino.

"Owning Mahowny" is a movie that screams to have been made in black and white. It has a gritty, closed-in feel. Forget about 007 flair and "Ocean's Eleven" cockiness. What's fascinating about Dan is how joyless his gambling is. Hunched over a baccarat table, he could just as well be at a dentist's office. His darting eyes suggest his inner high, but outwardly, he's a pudgy, poorly dressed nobody. (And no one does pudgy and poorly dressed better than Hoffman.) Meanwhile, the cagey Foss stands by and watches. And waits for the inevitable transfer of funds from Dan's pocket to his casino.

If the movie were only about these two -- Hoffman and Hurt are really quite wonderful, each feeding voraciously off the other's talent -- it would be a small gem. Unfortunately there's another plot involving Dan and his marriage-hungry girlfriend, played by Minnie Driver. Driver is one of the most irritating actors in the business, but she usually does an acceptable job. Here, she's a whiny void. Maybe she thinks her bad blond wig will do the acting for her.

But Driver shouldn't keep you from checking out "Owning Mahowny." Hoffman continues to astonish, and Hurt proves that, while his Oscar nominations for "Midnight Express" and "The Elephant Man" were more than two decades ago, he's still very much in the game.

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