Source: Pexels
Casino films are often iconic: the casinos themselves, the games, the soundtracks, and, of course, the characters. These contribute to casino and gambling films often being rated favourites by film and TV lovers. It’s not hard to understand why. Casinos evoke a certain feeling of excitement and thrill, not to mention the glamour that comes with them.
Ginger, Casino
Whether it is visiting a casino in Las Vegas or Monaco, or checking out a site listing some of the best new online casinos, both evoke that anticipation and exhilaration with the whirring of the slots and the spin of the roulette wheel. Through high-end graphics and the most modern technology, you can also feel like you are actually in a real casino in any far-flung part of the world without having to leave your home. But before checking out the bonuses and incentives on offer, here are some of the most iconic characters from the world’s best casino films, starting with an all-time favourite, Ginger!
Did you know that Ginger from the iconic film Casino was based on a real character? Geraldine ‘Geri’ McGee was born in Los Angeles in 1936 and worked as a model before becoming a Las Vegas showgirl. She had a modest upbringing with her parents and sister and graduated from school in 1954 before taking admin and modelling jobs to make ends meet. She had a daughter shortly after leaving high school and moved to Las Vegas in 1958.
That is where her foray into the world of casinos took place after she started a job at the Tropicana as a cocktail waitress and showgirl. She worked her way up through Las Vegas society over the years until she was hanging out with the likes of the characters found in the film. Her character in the film was portrayed by the world-famous Sharon Stone and her love interest by Robert de Niro. While many details of her life were changed and even dramatised for the big screen, Stone was commended for her portrayal of Gina.
Source: Pexels
James Bond, multiple Bond films
While Bond films are not necessarily casino films, casinos do appear in multiple films throughout the franchise. Each Bond brings a different perspective to the character, but let’s start at the beginning. Dr No was the first Bond film and thus the first to feature a casino – the Le Cercle Casino in London. The film was released in 1962, and it was the first time we ever heard the famous phrase, “Bond, James Bond.” Another iconic casino Bond film is GoldenEye which starred Pierce Brosnan as the British spy.
The casino in question here was the Casino de Monte Carlo, a real-life casino that dates all the way back to 1863. In this film, Brosnan plays a game of Baccarat with femme fatale Xennia Onatopp who later tries to assassinate him! No mention of casinos in Bond films would be complete without mentioning Daniel Craig in the 2006 Casino Royale. In this film, Craig, playing a rougher and more authentic Bond, played a Texas Hold’em poker game in the fictional Royale-Les-Eaux.
Danny Ocean, Ocean’s franchise
The Ocean’s franchise is a series of US-made comedy-casino-heist films that are directed and produced by Steven Soderbergh. The first three- Ocean’s Eleven, Ocean’s Twelve, and Ocean’s Thirteen were followed by Ocean’s 8, which stars an all-female star cast. Danny Ocean is the brains and motivation behind all the escapades and something of a charmer.
Played by heart-throb George Clooney, the character was previously married to Tess Ocean, played by Julia Roberts. As a character and despite his rogue-like qualities, Danny is both loyal and protective, as well as confident, stylish and assertive. This, along with his high levels of intelligence, has made him a popular and iconic casino film figure.
Of course, there are many more iconic characters from casino films out there, but you need to watch more films to discover them for yourself!