We credit film directors for the way characters are depicted and portrayed in the movies, and they are always looking for fresh ways of grabbing our attentions. As casino gaming has risen in popularity, casino themed films have also become more common, with the cinema depicting casinos as a world of risk, danger, glamour and (sometimes) criminal activity – all of which makes for exciting and memorable characters. These are the top three casino cinema characters.
Ace Rothstein – Casino
This 1995 film paired Robert De Niro with Martin Scorsese for (thus far) the last time, and with the whole film being centred on the Las Vegas casinos, it’s filled with brilliant scenes. In terms of capturing Ace’s ruthlessness though, the one where we get a glimpse of what happens to customers he catches cheating at the poker or blackjack tables is definitely unforgettable.
Eric Stoner – The Cincinnati Kid
Steve McQueen’s career was filled with iconic characters, but Eric Stoner in this 1965 gaming film was definitely one everyone remembers and a regular on ‘best casino film’ lists. As the young pretender trying to take down The Man (Edward G Robinson) in an epic poker battle, the final scene alone would be enough to mark it – and him – as one of the top 3 casino characters in cinema history.
James Bond – Casino Royale
It’s tough to pick a single Bond movie, but the casino gaming in this 2006 film starring Daniel Craig as 007 is a little more central to the action than usual. Here, Bond swaps his usual baccarat for a grittier game of Texas Hold’em poker against arch villain Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen) – of course he wins, maybe the outcome would have been different at an online casino. Poker buffs will say the hands are unrealistic, but since when has anyone watched Bond for realism?
As you can see, there have been numerous amazing performances by Hollywood titans in casino movies, but who would you be backing in a poker game between these three?