Butler helps make ‘Playing’ interesting

There really is no point to seeing “Playing for Keeps” unless you would like to have sex with Gerard Butler, or would like to be Gerard Butler, or think, at least, that life inside his shoes would be interesting. As a movie, it’s not much. But it’s the best showcase for his charm that Butler has ever had.

In fact, the movie doesn’t merely showcase his charm; its deficiencies work to highlight it. An hour into “Playing for Keeps,” you might wake up to realize vaguely that nothing much has happened, but you might also realize that it has taken a full hour to notice, and start to mind.

Until then, it’s pleasant enough to watch this guy ambling and stumbling through life, and the fact that a succession of beautiful co-stars — Jessica Biel, Uma