Whether they’re a classic story of love and betrayal or a heist, movies about casinos capture the allure of high stakes entertainment. This is because casinos are naturally exciting places to be, a place where gamblers can win or lose everything. Whether it’s a scene of a casino heist or an all-out rat race, audiences are drawn into the story and want to know what will happen next.
Gambling is a form of entertainment that has been around for thousands of years. While the precise origin is unknown, it’s widely accepted that gambling in some form has existed in every society. It’s been found in ancient Mesopotamia, Greece and Rome, Napoleon’s France and Elizabethan England. However, the idea of a casino as a place to find all the different ways of gambling under one roof did not emerge until the 16th century.
The modern casino is a glamorous affair with high-end restaurants, free drinks and stage shows. However, even the most luxurious casinos are competing not just with each other but also with non-gambling resorts, online gaming and an illegal gambling business that is far larger than the legal casino industry.
Casino is a fascinating film that reveals the seedy underbelly of the Vegas gambling industry. While Robert De Niro’s Ace Rothstein is the film’s main character, it is Sharon Stone’s Ginger that steals the show with her unflinching ability to seduce and manipulate men. It’s a performance that both builds on and inverts the reputation she had established with Basic Instinct.