Brendan Reilly, a disgraced financier posing as Lord Doyle, drinks and gambles his way through the casinos of Macau as his money runs out. A mysterious woman named Dao Ming seems to offer him a way out. Look at how the film turns an addict's luck into a ghost story.
Ballad of a Small Player is a 2025 drama, thriller and comedy film directed by Edward Berger. This breakdown covers 5 techniques (2 psychology, 2 narrative and 1 cinematography), each with the scene where you can see it. If you like how it is made, Magic in the Moonlight uses several of the same techniques.
Showing a character's fixation or addiction through repeated habits, objects and colors. The compulsion drives the behavior and defines who they are more than any speech could.
How this film uses it
Reilly cannot stop gambling, and the film shows it through his habits. He drifts between luxury hotels and casinos, relies on drink and superstition and chases the thrill of the next hand. The compulsion defines him more than any speech could.
Where to see it
Baccarat tables: with mounting debts and dwindling funds, Reilly keeps trying his luck at baccarat. He meets Dao Ming, a credit broker, at the tables.
Keeping it unclear what is real and what is imagined in the film's world. You end up as unsure as the main character.
How this film uses it
Dao nurses Reilly back to health and tells him they are kindred spirits. Later you learn she was never really there. Once you know that, you question everything else he saw.
Where to see it
Lamma Island: after a heart attack, Reilly wakes in a floating home where Dao nurses him. He later finds a number on his hand is the combination to her locked shed, full of money underwater.
Saving a reveal for the climax that changes the meaning of every scene before it. You have to rebuild the whole film in your head with the new knowledge.
How this film uses it
One line from a gambler called Grandma changes the film. Dao drowned herself on the first night of the festival, which means Reilly's time with her was hallucination. The earlier scenes now read as a haunting.
Where to see it
Grandma's reveal: after a final baccarat win, Grandma offers Reilly a game at 100-to-1 odds, which he declines. She tells him Dao drowned herself on the first night of the Ghost Festival.
Using a ghost as a moral presence tied to past wrongs, often gentler than the living, so the real horror and the real hope come from human choices.
How this film uses it
Dao is a presence tied to guilt and bad luck. Reilly burns his winnings as an offering at the temple and sees her in his reflection. The ghost is gentler than the living people who chase him for money.
Where to see it
Temple ending: Reilly burns all his money as an offering at the temple. Amid the festival fireworks his reflection appears to become Dao herself.
Filming in recognizable real places so the setting acts like part of the cast. Streets, buildings and landscapes shape the mood of the story.
How this film uses it
Macau and Hong Kong are part of the cast. Casinos, hotels and temples set the mood, and one review of the film called Macau memorably opulent. The setting looks glamorous and also keeps closing in on Reilly.
Where to see it
Macau casinos: principal photography ran in Macau and Hong Kong from 26 June to 25 August 2024. Reilly moves between luxury hotels and opulent casinos.
Questions
Ballad of a Small Player: quick answers
What filmmaking techniques does Ballad of a Small Player use?
CineCode breaks down 5 techniques in Ballad of a Small Player (2025): Obsession and Compulsion Portrait, Unreliable Reality, Retroactive Reframing Revelation, Ghost as Moral Figure and Real Locations as Character.
Who directed Ballad of a Small Player?
Edward Berger directed Ballad of a Small Player, released in 2025. CineCode also covers All Quiet on the Western Front (2022), Conclave (2024).
What films are similar to Ballad of a Small Player?
Films that share techniques with Ballad of a Small Player include Magic in the Moonlight (2014), A Beautiful Mind (2001), The Sixth Sense (1999), Shutter Island (2010).
