This thrilling and action-packed movie series showcases some great performances and highly stylized visuals that make it very worthwhile to watch. It isn’t as accomplished as his masterworks like ‘Nashville’ or ‘MASH’ but ‘California Split’ is still an inspiring work from a master craftsman at the peak of his powers. The film explores the relationship between two gamblers who bond over their love for the game and delves deep into the bizarre madness encircling the world of gambling. ‘California Split’ has an almost brutal quality to it that makes it feel so real, nuanced and fascinating that it manages to hold up brilliantly with every viewing.
The 20 Best Gambling Movies to Watch if You’re Feeling Lucky
“Hard Eight” is a neo-noir crime drama about an experienced and enigmatic gambler who takes a young man under his wing. “Hard Eight” is all about fate, redemption, and the complex dynamics between its characters. Besides the actual twists of relationships, the movie also shows the atmosphere of the gambling world.
‘House of Games’
So go back and rewatch Croupier, where all that promise was laid out fairly magnificently. He’s Jack, an aspiring novelist desperate for money — soon, he’s a croupier getting to know the world of casino gambling. Pitched like a hard-boiler noir — Jack has the blasé seen-it-all vibe of a private dick — Croupier explores the sweaty anxiety and crippling sadness of those who have thrown their lives (and money) away at the tables. If the plot complications aren’t always satisfying, the film’s vivid recreation of dingy casino life is utterly intoxicating. “Casino Royale” is an action James Bond spy movie inspired by the old version released many years earlier.
- And Uncut Gems (2019) as a whole made decent money in theaters — it was actually production company A24’s highest-grossing film at the time of release — on top of garnering great impressions from critics.
- ‘Casino Raiders’ tells a thrilling story of two gambling friends who are up against notorious Japanese gangsters, which would go on to change their lives forever.
- Although, for some of these films, you might need to do some digging around to find which country they’re available in.
- After getting word that Le Chiffre wants to use high stakes poker to raise money for terrorist activities, MI6 enlists the help of Mr. Bond to try to beat him at the poker table.
- The payoffs to the mafia, the politicized wranglings with the Nevada Gaming Board, the berated Blackjack dealers, and the showgirls are explored like parts of the blueprints of the Vegas gambling world.
- It may not have been showered in Oscar nominations, but Ocean’s Eleven is undoubtedly the most famous heist movie of our age.
Dark City
These films, with their unique perspectives on the world of gambling, offer a wide range of emotions, from the thrill of victory to the despair of defeat. Whether you’re a fan of the glitz and glamour of casino life, the tension of the poker table, or the drama of a life changed by a single bet. Richard Dreyfuss stars in “Let It Ride,” a comedy about a day at the races that turns into an unbelievable winning streak. It’s a light-hearted look at the dream of the big win, filled with quirky characters and comedic situations. A classic of French cinema, “Bob le Flambeur” combines the elegance of noir with the thrill of the heist genre, telling the story of an aging gambler planning one final score at the Deauville casino. Justin Timberlake and Ben Affleck star in “Runner Runner,” a thriller that explores the dangerous and deceitful world of online gambling.
Molly’s Game
He eventually succumbs to his dark desires and ends up in a situation far worse than he could have ever imagined. Bernie Lootz is very efficient at what he does – he works at a Las Vegas casino as a sort of “bad luck bringer” that goes out of his way to jinx gamblers into losing. Shelly Kaplow, the casino’s boss lady, appreciates him and his ability to keep her casino on the winning end of things. But Bernie’s “cooler” abilities start to falter when he comes across a waitress named Natalie Belisario, who he falls head over heels for. Once Shelly takes notice of Bernie’s changed behavior, the plotline within The Cooler blossoms into something you’ll become heavily invested in as it unfolds. Robert De Niro, Adam Sandler, George Clooney, Tom Cruise and a host of other world-class actors have appeared in some of the greatest gambling movies ever put on the big screen.
‘High Roller: The Stu Ungar Story’
The Card Counter is a revenge thriller about an ex-military interrogator turned gambler who is haunted by his past. Although the MCU and DCEU exist separately from each other, there are instances where each studio has referenced the other in their movies. The ’90s were the Wild West of fantasy films, rife with experimentation before the genre found its https://crazystar-casino.com/ way to Middle Earth. If you’re looking for thrillers, these underrated features on Netflix are guaranteed to deliver the tension you seek. And it was of course a massive success in theaters, raking in $469.3 million on a $35 million budget. It chronicles the tale of Phil, Alan, Stu, and Doug as they travel to Las Vegas for Doug’s bachelor party.
Casino Royale (
‘Bob le Flambeur’ is widely admired for its innovative, stylistic techniques including the pioneering use of handheld cameras, and has widely influenced many American films on the same subject. Set in 1936, ‘The Sting’ tells the story of a man seeking vengeance for his partner and teams up with a big shot to win a fortune from a criminal banker. The narrative is segregated into chapters with music playing a key role in storytelling. Parts of the film do not hold up well and may seem a bit dated now but the plot is quite cleverly tackled and gives a smart, funny picture into the world of poker games. And what’s more interesting is that we end up rooting for the leads who are apparently criminals and have very few likable qualities. This Wayne Kramer romantic flick is about a sad casino employee who personifies the word “unlucky” for the players around him and is desperate to be with a woman.
- William H. Macy stars as the titular character Bernie Lootz — and as a cooler in a casino, he acts as bad luck for the other gamblers, placed there by the casino themselves as a sort of negative presence.
- ‘Rounders’ surprisingly comes off as a highly underrated film despite having a star-studded cast as it failed to make any significant impact during its release and wasn’t a huge box office success either.
- You have to see this thriller for yourself to discover the violence, heists and clowning these guys must go through to evade Harry’s wrath.
- Known for its atmospheric and introspective storytelling, “The Card Counter” offers a slow-burning and thought-provoking narrative that examines the destructive power of vengeance.
- Eric Stoner (played by Steve McQueen), also known as The Cincinnati Kid, is the young, cocky, and eager-to-card-duel newbie on the block who’s dying to try his luck against the master.
- Movies about gambling take audiences on exhilarating journeys with characters who face overwhelming odds, yet navigate through with luck, strategy, and skill.
Television & Film
The Cincinnati Kid shows that there’s an honor to be had, even in the high-stakes world of big-money poker games. Our journey through the best gambling movies has taken us from the neon lights of Las Vegas to the intense quiet of the poker table, reflecting the broad spectrum of stories that this genre has to offer. Whether it’s the thrill of the win, the agony of defeat, or the human stories behind the bets, these films capture the essence of gambling in all its forms. We hope this list inspires you to explore these cinematic gems, each offering a unique perspective on the risks and rewards that define the gambling experience. Gambling has always been a rich vein for filmmakers to mine, offering narratives filled with risk, high stakes, and the intriguing personalities drawn to this world.
‘Molly’s Game’
The worst gambling addicts are the ones who seem to be addicted to losing yet always think they have a shot at winning, and Eddie Garrett (Jake Johnson) in Netflix’s original comedy film Win It All fits that bill perfectly. Eddie stupidly begins gambling the money in the bag and is somehow saved from himself in the end thanks to a small heart attack. Outside of Eddie’s hilarious misfortune and idiotic gambling logic, Win It All actually has an empathetic core and is a great advertisement for the benefits of addiction counseling. The Great Recession of 2008 made many people take desperate measures to get money and Killing Them Softly punches you in the mouth with the harsh truth that robbing a mafia poker game isn’t the way to go.
The 30 Best Gambling Movies of All Time
The most stressful part of “Uncut Gems” is watching Howard fall into the same old pitfalls time after time, unable to overcome his gambling addiction. “The Hustler” makes for a nice change of pace by switching up the setting and the type of game being gambled on. Rather than a casino, the gambling in “The Hustler” takes place within the confines of a billiard hall where money exchanges hands over games of pool. Mississippi Grind plays out like a gambling road trip tale that takes viewers on a wild ride through the South. When Gerry ends up meeting a gentleman by the name of Curtis (played by Ryan Reynolds), Gerry deems him his new lucky charm. So much so that Gerry takes Curtis on the road with him as he taps into his good luck during their gambling tour around the South.
- Directed by John Dahl, this is the only film on the list that has gone down as a true cult classic.
- But for a brief moment, before Spacey is being kidnapped and beaten in a hotel room, it’s an interesting look at the science behind smart gambling.
- If you happened to miss this critical darling from a few years back, it’s undoubtedly worth checking out.
- The film showcases the meticulous planning involved in prepping for the casino heist and goes to painstaking lengths to present the plan with utmost realism and plausibility.
- But it also had an intriguing premise, with Newman’s character now a retired pool hustler who takes a new gambler (Tom Cruise’s character, Vincent Lauria) under his wing.
- The audience is along for the ride as they watch Howard succeed in his risks when they pay off and his failures when his gambling addiction overtakes him.
- Directed by the master of French crime thrillers, Jean-Pierre Melville, Bob le Flambeur, a.k.a. Bob the Gambler, is an early masterpiece.
- Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Samuel L. Jackson comprise the impressive cast for this debut indie movie.
- As with the best gambling movies, the poker table is only one arena where the stakes are high in Molly’s Game.
- He got the idea to build a hotel and casino resort, the Flamingo, during one of his trips to Vegas to check up on a gambling joint.
- James Cann as gambling addict Axel Freed is obsessed with the thrill of gambling, even if it ends in self-destructive losses, and director Karel Reisz depicts the downward spiral of addiction with depressing accuracy.
From the Safdie Brothers, Uncut Gems follows fast-talking jeweler Howard as he tries to juggle family obligations, his mistress, angry collectors, and mounting debts on top of his insatiable thirst for gambling. One of James Caan’s best movies, The Gambler focuses on a literature professor with a gambling vice who must avoid loan sharks when they begin to circle. A perennial down-on-his-luck guy works as a gambling jinx, known as a cooler, in an old school casino until his luck changes for the better when he becomes smitten with a cocktail waitress, much to his cutthroat boss’s frustration.
Casino
The movie revolves around a gambling addict whose life takes a shocking turn after he meets a new bookie who introduces him to a special game which seems highly lucrative but has its own dangers. The story is a little too simplistic and its exploration of addiction is a little one-dimensional but nevertheless, the attempt is commendable, and the performances lift the film beyond the realms of mediocrity. The title can be translated as either “Bob the High-Roller” or “Bob the Gambler.” The titular Bob, played by Robert Duchesne, is a former gangster with a life-consuming gambling addiction. To do it, he calls on his old gangster contacts and puts together a team of experts to pull off a heist.
Atlantic City (
Part of the James Bond saga, ‘Casino Royale’ chronicles the beginning of Bond’s career as Agent 007, as he takes on a mission to pull back a mob banker from winning a high stakes poker game. ‘Casino Royale’ is one of the best James Bond flicks and features an iconic performance by Daniel Craig who took the Bond character to another level, portraying him as a tough yet vulnerable man. The film is gritty, entertaining and visually mesmerizing and is just the kind of stuff to watch if you’re in the mood for some pure, classy, adrenaline pumping fun. Clive Owen stars as Jack Manfred, a wannabe novelist who takes up a job as a croupier, both because he needs the money and because he believes it will make for good research for the book he’s writing. The line between himself and the main character of his novel begins to blur as he leans more and more into his constructed persona as a croupier. Alex Kingston as Yani de Villiers makes for a great femme fatale in the classic neo-noir tradition, while the film’s smokey cinematography and hard-boiled voice-over narration complete the noir stylings.
Because she was confident in betting on her preparation and smarts because it was a dream of hers. The charm of the 1950 crime noir film Dark City is how quickly a movie about gambling can turn into a murder mystery revenge flick. Somehow director William Dieterle fits a romantic ending into a gambling film where lives are lost just as easily as money is. Trying to keep up with all of the twists in Lucky Number Slevin is almost as difficult as picking a winner in a horse race but just as entertaining.
It’s a sobering look at the devastating effects of gambling addiction on a person’s life and career. Robert Altman’s “California Split” follows two friends, played by George Segal and Elliott Gould, who share a passion for gambling. The film captures the highs and lows of the gambler’s life with a mix of drama and humor. Daniel Craig’s first outing as James Bond features a gripping high-stakes poker game against a terrorist financier.
Poker Queens
When one of them finds a lost wallet with a winning lottery ticket inside, it sets off a chain of events that leads to unexpected twists and revelations. The movie is known for its clever storytelling, intricate plot structure, and a series of suspenseful and thought-provoking moments. Casino is an excellent film depicting what happens behind closed doors in Las Vegas, away from the world of sports betting apps and online casinos. The 1995 gambling movie directed by Martin Scorcese stars Robert De Niro as Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein, an oddsmaker from Chicago who attracts the attention of the Mafia for his skills with numbers.
The Card Counter
Since the film is based in reality, it’s fitting that “Owning Mahowny” is also one of the most realistic portrayals of gambling addiction ever seen in a movie. Matt Damon stars as Mike McDermott, a man with serious poker skills but life elements that keep him away from the game, namely a disapproving girlfriend, an attachment to law school, and a failed attempt at a big win looming over him. Mike is drawn back to the game when his trouble-making friend named Worm, played by Edward Norton, puts a debt on both of their heads. John Turturro has a memorable supporting role as Joey Knish, and John Malkovich makes for a fun villain named Teddy KGB with an over-the-top Russian accent.
This movie adds a compelling layer to our understanding of gambling, moving beyond the casino and card games to the equally complex domain of sports. Matt Damon plays Mike McDermott, a reformed gambler who finds himself drawn back into the game to help a friend pay off dangerous debts. Alongside Edward Norton, Damon delivers a memorable performance that highlights the psychology and strategy behind poker, rather than just the thrill of winning or losing. The film emphasizes loyalty and redemption, while giving audiences a realistic look at the risks of gambling addiction.
If you have 1hr 57min to spare, this is a casino heist movie that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. He comes across John, played by John C. Reilly, by chance after John has gone broke and takes pity on him. The two enter a mentor-mentee relationship centered around a Reno casino, and Sydney even becomes a father figure for John. “Rounders” not only made a big splash as a movie but was also hugely influential to the development and popularization of Texas Hold ’em poker in the real world. According to PokerListings.com, “Rounders” can be credited with elevating no-limit Texas Hold ’em to its current status as the most popular card game in the world.
As you might expect, there’s a ringleader, Danny Ocean (played by George Clooney), and a team of high risk-takers who want to execute one of the most elaborate casino heists in history. Vegas is probably not the right place to go for your honeymoon, a subtle fact Jack Singer (played by Nicolas Cage) learns the hard way. After burning through his life-savings of $65,000 at the poker table, Jack who’s about to get married to Betsy (Sarah Jessica Parker) is forced to lend his fiancée to the winning opponent and con artist, Tommy Korman (James Caan). If you keep a tab on what’s happening in the world of poker, then Stu Ungar needs no introduction.
“The Gambler” tells a story of a literature professor with a severe gambling addiction, trapped in a dangerous cycle of compulsive gambling, debt, and self-destruction. In addition to the bright and outstanding gambling scenes, the movie also skillfully shows the psychological aspects of addiction and the emotional turmoil that comes with it. He steals funds from the bank to fuel his habit and begins a downward spiral of risk-taking.
Set in New Orleans during the Great Depression, this classic American drama tells the story of a talented young poker player who aspires to be the best in the game. He gets the opportunity to prove his skills when he challenges the reigning poker champion to a high-stakes poker game. “The Cincinnati Kid” became famous for its impressive poker scenes and powerful demonstration of the psychology behind the game. Even today, despite the movie’s age, it is considered one of the key gambling movies of the time.
The film’s main point revolves around the involvement of the mob in the Vegas casinos of the ’70s and ’80s. The film goes from casino to casino when the World Series of Poker becomes a beacon for the main characters, making poker the poison of the protagonist’s choice. From director Paul Schrader, the writer behind Taxi Driver, The Card Counter is a dark and intense ride through the ideas of redemption and the tight grip of the past. The gambling in the film is more of a backdrop to Hard Eight’s character study of an assortment of interesting figures. Hard Eight is Paul Thomas Anderson’s directorial debut, showing the early talents of one of the best directors of his generation. Philip Seymour Hoffman stars in “Owning Mahowny” as a bank manager embezzling funds to feed his gambling addiction.
Fans of poker, roulette, or just placing bets on sports teams understand the adrenaline and despair that can occur with the make-it-or-break-it atmosphere of gambling. Filmmakers from Spike Lee to Martin Scorsese understand this all-in mindset of gambling and infuse it into their awesome films. James Caan plays a university professor with a crippling gambling addiction in “The Gambler.” The film delves deep into the psyche of a man who risks everything on the turn of a card, showcasing the dark side of gambling addiction. Directed by Martin Scorsese, who’s rumored to be working on a biographical film about the punk band The Ramones, Casino is a gripping exploration of the rise and fall of a Las Vegas gambling empire. Robert De Niro stars as Sam “Ace” Rothstein, a casino operator tangled in a web of corruption, greed, and betrayal.
It’s not quite Goodfellas (although Joe Pesci does play a similar, psychotically inclined character in both films), but Casino is just as bold, stylish, and slick as any other Scorsese picture of its kind. Director Steven Soderbergh takes us through all the intricate planning and execution, then wraps up with a satisfying ending. It may not have been showered in Oscar nominations, but Ocean’s Eleven is undoubtedly the most famous heist movie of our age. Everything about the Safdie brothers’ crime-thriller is high-wire and frenzied, just like its haphazard protagonist. And, of course, being a Safdie movie, it was produced by A24, so expect a lot of visceral neon lights that illuminate its dark themes.
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