Excitement, Cameras, Action! 4 Movies Where The Casino is Not Scenery but Reality!

Films about casino and gaming adventures feature an inherent drama because, irrefutably, they are all about risk. Most gambling enthusiasts will agree that it’s not quite fun to watch someone be discreet and vigilant. Instead, they prefer to see someone persistently putting his well-being on the line in irrational, despairing hope for that "one life-changing score." 

Below, we have gathered the top 4 movies of all time that gambling fans will surely appreciate. 

#1 Casino

Directed by the meritorious Martin Scorsese, Casino is a popular gambling film released in 1995. This movie found its way to our top picks because of its unique representation of Scorsese’s perspective of Las Vegas and intriguing storyline. What’s interesting here is that he tried to show a Janus-like face, which is both cruel and shiny.

The action described in the movie took place in Las Vegas in the 1970 and 1980’s. It tells the story of two hooligans who were also best buddies - Nick Santoro (Joe Pesci) and Sam Ace Rothstein (Robert De Niro). Sam was an experienced gamer who operated the casino for the mob. On the other side, we have Nicky, who controlled and made sure that everyone was on line. 

However, with Ace falling in love and marrying an escort named Ginger (Sharon Stone), everything changes quite fast. In contrast, our next primary character, Nicky, also gets a tragic flaw - he goes down the path of unstoppable violence and drug use.

#2 Ocean's Thirteen

Ocean's Thirteen is a 2007 American comedy movie written by Brian Koppelman and directed by Steven Soderbergh. It is the sequel to Ocean's Twelve and the last segment in the Ocean's film trilogy. 

The plot of the film revolves around Reuben Tishkoff, who, against advice from Danny Ocean, his friend and ex-criminal partner, builds a casino hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. Then, Reuben gets involved with casino mogul and investor Willy Bank, whose gangsters force him into signing his ownership stake.

Because of this, Tishkoff becomes bedridden after suffering from a heart attack. In order to help his friend, Danny offers Bank an opportunity to set things right, but the latter refuses and successfully finishes the construction of the hotel, renaming it "The Bank."

To avenge Reuben, Danny gathers his crew to ruin Bank at the opening ceremony of the casino hotel.

#3 Casino Royale

In this movie, Daniel Craig (James Bond) proves that apart from being intelligent, strong, and courageous, he is also a great gambler. Right after he obtains his 00 status and is given a license to kill, he receives his first official mission as an MI6 agent.

Craig's boss, “M” (Judi Dench), sends him and Vesper Lynd (Eva Green) on a mission against widely known Le Chiffre - a  terrorist’s banker. 

Chiffre takes part in a poker game at Casino Royale in Montenegro after losing a huge amount of his terrorist client’s money. His aim was to win the game at all costs in order to reimburse the money he lost. And Craig's goal here is to ensure Le Chiffre's failure.

#4 Twenty-One

The movie Twenty-One is among those casino films concentrating on Blackjack games. It is about the story of Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess) - a smart M.I.T. student in Boston who dreams of becoming a doctor and going to Harvard School of Medicine. However, as our hero was from an average working-class family, he couldn't afford to gather the required $300,000 for schooling. 

All these led him to join the secret club of Professor Micky Rosa and become an expert in Blackjack card counting. Later on, he used all his knowledge in the field to take Vegas gambling venues for millions in winnings. 

Some Final Notes

Above were our top picks of the most recognizable movies featuring the lives of various characters who took the path of gambling. 

As new casinos appear in the gaming industry in Australia every single day, new and more advanced films about gambling will surely continue to find their place on people's watch lists.