Casinos are a source of ideas for many movie makers. It seems that Hollywood and gambling are well connected. In turn, game makers have released several slots machines based on movies. These movies span across many genres, from the spy thrills of James Bond’s “Casino Royale” (both versions) to the heist action of “Ocean’s 11.” But today we want to take a look at some less famous gambling movies which have had a more dramatic impact on the gambling world!
Rounders
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 65%
Our Rating: 7/10
Most poker fans will confirm that Rounders is the best poker movie of all times. The story revolves around Mike McDermott, played by Matt Damon, and his lifelong dream of winning big at the World Series of Poker. Mike is a young law student, but also a very gifted poker player.
His dreams are shattered when he loses his entire bankroll in a single hand while playing with a Russian mobster by the name of Teddy KGB. From there on he promises to quit poker and focus on his law studies. But this doesn’t last for too long. An old friend of his gets out of jail and is immediately faced with all the debts he left behind. So Lester “Worm” Murphy, played by Edward Norton, turns to his friend Mike for help. With a rather big amount to pay back, they realize that their only hope is if Mike starts playing poker again and wins the amount Worm owes. It all goes well until in one game Worm tries to cheat, so both of them end up with no money and beaten up. In the end, Mike goes back to Teddy KGB for one last all in-game and manages to come ahead by $60,000. This is enough to pay back the debts and enough for a seat at the World Series of Poker.
Casino
IMDB Rating: 8.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 80%
Our Rating: 9/10
Casino was a blockbuster hit when it was released in 1995. The movie is directed by Martin Scorsese, with Robert De Niro (Sam “Ace” Rothstein), Joe Pesci (Nicholas “Nicky” Santoro and Sharon Stone (Ginger McKenna) starring in the main roles. The movie shows the birth of Las Vegas and the casinos and how the mafia operated them in the early years. The biggest profit for the mafia came from skimming the profits of the casino before any taxes were paid. This scheme worked very good for years, under the leadership of Ace, but it would all soon come to an end. Ace married Ginger and they had a daughter. But soon they started having problems in their marriage, mostly because of Gingers drinking and drug abuse, accompanied by unresolved issues with an ex-boyfriend. As their marriage crumbles so does the casino business. In the end, the police break down the scheme and pretty much everyone involved is taken out by the bosses, in order to avoid prosecution. In the end, Ace retires to San Diego as a sports handicapper, which is basically right back where he started.
Maverick
IMDB Rating: 7/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 66%
Our Rating: 7/10
Maverick is an older western comedy which was released in 1994. The movie stars Mel Gibson (Maverick) in the leading role, along with Jodie Foster (Annabelle Bransford) and James Garner (Zane Cooper). The movie shows the life of Maverick and his quest to collect $25,000 in order to play at a poker tournament. He goes across the country collecting debts from people who owe him and also by playing poker at different saloons. On his journey, he meets Annabelle and Zane so they all end up at the poker tournament together. The best scene of the movie is when Maverick wins the tournament by drawing a much-needed Ace from the deck, giving him a royal flush. This way he ends up winning $500,000, only to be robbed by Zane Cooper. The movie ends with another robbery among thieves and another quest for Maverick to retrieve half of his winnings.
The Cooler
IMDB Rating: 7/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 77%
Our Rating: 8/10
The Cooler is a romantic drama, with a casino twist. The main roles are played by William H. Macy (Bernie Lootz), Alec Baldwin (Shelly Kaplow) and Maria Bello (Natalie Belisario). Simply put Bernie is a born loser. He has nothing going on in his life, lives in a crummy apartment and works at the casino paying up old gambling debts. Simply put, he’s a guy down on his luck. But this is what the casino needs from time to time. Once a player starts winning big Bernie is sent to table. No matter which game it is the luck of the entire table goes down, saving the casino a lot of money. But this changes when Bernie meets Natalie and falls hopefully in love. Needless to say that this also changes his luck, so working as a cooler is no longer a possibility. The movie is full of small intrigues and received great critics at the box office.
21
IMDB Rating: 6.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 36%
Our Rating: 5/10
21 is a 2008 blockbuster movie with a focus on blackjack. This movie is inspired by somewhat real-life events. It shows the life of a group of MIT students who specialized in counting cards and winning at blackjack, under the leadership of their professor. They managed to win millions of dollars across casinos until they finally came to Las Vegas. In the movie, the main roles are played by Kevin Spacey (Micky Rosa) and Jim Sturges (Ben Campbell), who are in the game for two different reasons. Ben wants to make $300,000 to cover his intuition costs at MIT, while Micky is aiming to retire as a rich man. The two of them clash towards the end of the movie, setting an intense atmosphere on the screen. There’s a lot of deception in the movie towards the end and a lot of money involved. The movie ends with Ben telling the entire story to the director in charge of scholarships.
Do movies portray the casino world well?
Winning big at the casino is a dream come true for every gambler. We all want to hit the jackpot and walk away with millions of dollars under our belt. This has been known to happen at the casinos, but a lot of times the lucky winners remain anonymous and the story of their success doesn’t spread far.
In recent years with the live broadcast of poker tournaments, we got to see just how people earn millions of dollars while playing poker. While sometimes straying from reality, we also have a chance to enjoy it depicted in films, where we can lose ourselves to the thrill of the story as the characters chase that ultimate win.