• Pop Culture
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Comic Books
    • Video Games
    • Toys & Collectibles
  • Features
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Articles and Opinions
    • Interviews
    • Exclusives
    • Flickering Myth Films
    • FMTV
  • About
    • About Flickering Myth
    • Write for Flickering Myth
    • Advertise on Flickering Myth
  • Socials
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • Bluesky
    • Instagram
    • Flipboard
    • Linktree
    • X
  • Terms
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

Flickering Myth

Geek Culture | Movies, TV, Comic Books & Video Games

  • News
  • Reviews
  • Articles & Opinions
  • Write for Us
  • The Baby in the Basket

The Best Ever Casino Films

November 22, 2013 by admin

Oliver Davis counts down the best ever casino films…

5. Ocean’s Eleven

It’s got more stars than a sky-gazing evening with Brian Cox, Ocean’s Eleven was a dream team-up movie with as-yet-unmatched ‘name’ power.

George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts…even Bernie Mac, the 2001 remake even surpassed Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr.’s original. Flashy, Soderbergh-slick and with a twisting Las Vegas casino heist climax, Ocean’s Eleven was successful enough to spawn two sequels…which makes the current Ocean’s count around 36.

4. Casino Royale

At the Casino Royale, James Bond (Daniel Craig) is up against Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen) in a high-stakes game of poker. It’s so tense, the bad guy cries blood. Which is how all villains should weep.

The casino setting is a Bond movie staple, so it’s a smart convention to embrace for Craig’s first outing as the character. It seems Bond’s most natural habitat; a place of suaveness and perpetual night, full of daring, risk and beautiful women. It sounds exhausting. Thanks to the Internet, most of us can now leave the tuxedo on its hanger and simply play online casino games in Singapore.

Some argue this is the greatest Bond movie of all time. So fourth place seems deserving. It’s tough at the top here.

3. The Sting

Although The Sting isn’t strictly a ‘casino’ movie, it does contain arguably the best gambling scene in cinematic history: Henry Gondorff (Paul Newman) conning Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw) in a high-stakes (aren’t they all?) poker game aboard an express train.

It’s a masterpiece of suspense, with cons, tells and bluffs told almost entirely though peeking over cards. The film doesn’t simply straddle the line between humour and seriousness. It confidently swaggers on it, doing the occasional backflip and slyly twitching its moustache. Perfection.

2. Casino

Casino boasts the names Martin Scorsese, Robert DeNiro, Sharon Stone and Joe Pesci; it was the second collaboration between Scorsese and screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi (after Goodfellas); and it marked the eighth, and to-date the final, partnering of Scorsese and DeNiro.

But, most importantly, it’s the fifth highest ‘F’ word spurting film of all time, with an astonishing 2.37 uses per minute.

Just like Goodfellas, there is a focus on both the characters’ rise to and fall from power. Chronicling the lives of Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein (DeNiro), Nicky Santoro (Pesci) and Ginger McKenna (an Oscar-nominated Sharon Stone) in a corrupt Las Vegas casino, Scorsese paints an incredible character study. All over a trim 178 minute running time. Epic.

1. Revolver

Revolver is a criminally underrated movie, and Guy Ritchie’s most complicated work. Granted, it doesn’t take much to beat the cartoon characters of Snatch and Sherlock Holmes in terms of complexity, but the director here finds a gear far beyond his usual output. Unfortunately, some critics thought the gear was ‘reverse.’

Made when Ritchie was at his most pretentious – knee-deep in both Kabbalah and his then-wife, Madonna – the film is about two rival casinos and the bitter gang war that erupts between them. It’s about politics. It’s about chess. It’s about violence, fear, spirituality and Ray Liotta’s tan.

It’s a controversial choice for number one, but these lists are arbitrary at best. Hopefully it’ll prompt some of you to revisit this bold and ambitious piece.

Oliver Davis is one of Flickering Myth’s co-editors. You can follow him on Twitter @OliDavis.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

FMTV – Watch Our Latest Video Here

WATCH OUR MOVIE NOW FOR FREE ON PRIME VIDEO!

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:

20 Epic Car Chases That Will Drive You Wild

The Most Shocking Movies of the 1970s

Seven Famous Cursed Movie Productions

Great 90s Neo-Noir Movies You Might Have Missed

The 1990s in Comic Book Movies

The Return of Cameron Diaz: Her Best Movies Worth Revisiting

The Best Sword-and-Sandal Movies of the 21st Century

The Essential Horror Movie Threequels

The Best ‘So Bad It’s Good’ Horror Movies

Max Headroom: The Story Behind the 80s A.I. Icon

Top Stories:

18 Incredible 21st Century Films You May Have Missed

Movie Review – Superman (2025)

Crazy Cult 80s Movies You May Have Missed

4K Ultra HD Review – Quatermass 2 (1957)

Movie Review – Sovereign (2025)

“Dexter In Space” – Michael C. Hall talks 20 years of Dexter and where the killer will go next

Movie Review – Abraham’s Boys (2025)

Matilda Lutz is Red Sonja in trailer for long-delayed fantasy reboot

STREAM FREE ON PRIME VIDEO!

FEATURED POSTS:

Out for Vengeance: Ten Essential Revenge Movies

Great 2010s Thrillers You May Have Missed

The Goonies at 40: The Story Behind the Iconic 80s Adventure

MTV Generation-Era Comedies That Need New Sequels

Our Partners

  • Pop Culture
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Comic Books
    • Video Games
    • Toys & Collectibles
  • Features
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Articles and Opinions
    • Interviews
    • Exclusives
    • Flickering Myth Films
    • FMTV
  • About
    • About Flickering Myth
    • Write for Flickering Myth
    • Advertise on Flickering Myth
  • Socials
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • Bluesky
    • Instagram
    • Flipboard
    • Linktree
    • X
  • Terms
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

© Flickering Myth Limited. All rights reserved. The reproduction, modification, distribution, or republication of the content without permission is strictly prohibited. Movie titles, images, etc. are registered trademarks / copyright their respective rights holders. Read our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. If you can read this, you don't need glasses.


 

Flickering MythLogo Header Menu
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Articles & Opinions
  • Write for Us
  • The Baby in the Basket