☰
Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Owning Mahowny

Play trailer Poster for Owning Mahowny R 2003 1h 44m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
78% Tomatometer 96 Reviews 75% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Toronto bank employee Dan Mahowny (Philip Seymour Hoffman) seems like an honest man to his coworkers and loving girlfriend, Belinda (Minnie Driver). None of them realize that he is actually a compulsive gambler who steals from the bank's accounts to pay off his bookie, Frank (Maury Chaykin), and fund regular trips to casinos. Sleazy casino boss Victor (John Hurt) encourages Dan to amass more and more debt, until the missing money becomes hard to hide, and Dan's life spirals out of control.
Watch on Fandango at Home Stream Now

Where to Watch

Owning Mahowny

Owning Mahowny

What to Know

Critics Consensus

This story of addiction may lack the typical flash and glamour, but Hoffman makes Mahowny compelling.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View More (96)
Jay Boyar Orlando Sentinel Whether or not you think of gambling as a vice, you can bet on Owning Mahowny. Sep 12, 2003 Full Review Steven Rea Philadelphia Inquirer Owning Mahowny is an unflashy but fascinating meditation on addiction and greed. Rated: 3/4 Jul 22, 2003 Full Review Adam Nayman eye WEEKLY A clammy, compulsively watchable almost-comedy. Rated: 3.5/5 Jul 8, 2003 Full Review Jas Keimig The Stranger (Seattle, WA) Through it all, Hoffman plays Mahowny with no glamor or glitz, but with a type of studied vacuousness that's chilling. Jan 20, 2022 Full Review Jonah Koslofsky The Spool There's not much to root for one way or another, not much tension across the film's admirably tight runtime. Mar 29, 2021 Full Review Brian D. Johnson Maclean's Magazine The drama is a narrow, one-way street. And Hoffman is no Russell Crowe or Leonardo DiCaprio. He's just a brilliant American actor playing a repressed Canadian with a weakness for numbers. Oct 11, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More (330)
Penelope Y One of my all-time favourite films, showcasing Philip Seymour Hoffman’s outstanding acting. The first time I watched it in the early 2000s, his masterful portrayal of the antagonist left a lasting impression- making you truly feel his character’s pain and addiction. I’ve followed his work ever since. Rewatching it recently, it’s every bit as powerful as I remembered. Highly recommended if you haven’t seen it! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/14/25 Full Review Alain E A great movie about addiction with hardly a wrong step. The characters and situations are based on real events. To emphasize the grip gambling had on him, Hoffman is shown as having one major motivation in placing bets and no need for smoking, alcohol, sex and often forgetting to eat. Hoffman who gives a spectacular performance, unfortunately could not draw an analogy with his own dependence on narcotics which ended up costing his life at age 46. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/26/25 Full Review Isa B The subtle greatness of this film is a sight to behold. Philip Seymour Hoffman is his usual outstanding self in Owning Mahowny. The film creates suspense and strong feelings of anxiety as it progresses. I most definitely recommend it. 92/100 Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 12/04/24 Full Review Alec B A fascinating character study of a man who would be totally unremarkable if not for his vast financial crimes. Hoffman is perfect (obviously) and Hurt excels in the kind of role he rarely gets to play. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/27/24 Full Review phil h great movie about addiction Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 12/06/23 Full Review Gareth v An underrated movie on the downward spiral of addictions that go unchecked. While not a flashy movie, Seymour Hoffman's performance makes this quite compelling. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 06/19/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Owning Mahowny

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

View All

Richard Kwietniowski

Director

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Dan Mahowny

Minnie Driver

Belinda

Maury Chaykin

Frank Perlin

John Hurt

Victor Foss

Sonja Smits

Dana Selkirk

More Like This

View All
World Traveler 35% 36% World Traveler Watchlist Milwaukee, Minnesota 38% 50% Milwaukee, Minnesota Watchlist The Assassination of Richard Nixon 67% 69% The Assassination of Richard Nixon Watchlist L.I.E. 85% 78% L.I.E. Watchlist White Man's Burden 24% 36% White Man's Burden Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More
View All

Owning Mahowny

View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Toronto bank employee Dan Mahowny (Philip Seymour Hoffman) seems like an honest man to his coworkers and loving girlfriend, Belinda (Minnie Driver). None of them realize that he is actually a compulsive gambler who steals from the bank's accounts to pay off his bookie, Frank (Maury Chaykin), and fund regular trips to casinos. Sleazy casino boss Victor (John Hurt) encourages Dan to amass more and more debt, until the missing money becomes hard to hide, and Dan's life spirals out of control.
Director
Richard Kwietniowski
Producer
Andras Hamori, Seaton McLean, Alessandro Camon
Screenwriter
Maurice Chauvet, Gary Ross
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co
Alliance Atlantis Communications
Rating
R (Some Sexuality|Language)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 2, 2003, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 1, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA)
$1.0M
Runtime
1h 44m
Sound Mix
Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
Most Popular at Home Now