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Gambling on Poker Movies
Blackjack may be the game of choice in Robert Luketic’s 21, which hits theaters today. But in honor of the American public’s fascination with all things Vegas, MM takes a look at some of Rus Thompson’s picks for the best poker movies of all time.
The Sting (1973, George Roy Hill)
There is really only one card game in this picture, but it is the “hook” which catches the “mark,” Robert Shaw’s arrogant gambler, and kicks the whole plot into gear. By the time con artists Paul Newman, Robert Redford and their band of merry tricksters are finished, Shaw is out a cool half-million. The movie is brisk and artificial. The sets appear to be deliberately made from recycled, backlit props and the intertitle cards that announce the plot turns—“The Set-Up”, “The Wire”—clunk up the action. But Newman and Redford are immensely likable, reminding us that buddy movies work best when the stars and the story are both smart and amiable. In the high-stakes poker game scene, Newman pretends to be a drunken buffoon who out-cheats Shaw by switching cards on the big hand. The scene is nicely staged, but I wished it had revealed how he made the swap.
House of Games (1987, David Mamet)
A game of five-card draw also gets things going here, and everything is revealed. That’s the fun in this mind game of a movie, a classic Mamet-ian exercise in man-woman verbal and sexual jousting. Lindsay Crouse plays a best-selling author and psychologist trying to help a patient who says he’ll be killed if he doesn’t pay off a gambling debt to Mike (Joe Mantegna), a con artist who hangs out at a place called the House of Games. Crouse is attracted to Mike and his profession, and she and we get a crash course in the con. Although things end up bloody, the poker game that hooks Crouse is superb theater.
When Crouse sees liquid leaking out of the gun that one of the players (Ricky Jay) is using to threaten her, she realizes it’s a water pistol and she’s being had. When Mantegna chides Jay for putting water in a perfectly fine replica of a real pistol, Jay defends himself by saying, “I’m not going to threaten someone with an empty gun!” It’s lines like that one and this—“I’m from the United States of Kiss My Ass”—that make House of Games a literate delight.
Kaleidoscope (1966, Jack Smight)
Some body on the director’s creative team discovered a new kind of kaleidoscopic camera filter and decided to make a film around it. That’s the feel of this swinging ’60s, artsy-smartsy, comedy-drama. It teamed transatlantic hipsters Warren Beatty and Susannah York in a story about a playboy who comes up with what turns out to be an ingenious plan to bilk a Monte Carlo casino: he breaks into the factory that makes the playing cards and marks the photographic plates so he can “read” the decks. The cards are shipped off, he shows up at the tables and wins big. He’s caught (although we’re not sure how) and forced by Scotland Yard to play a big stakes poker game against a narcotics smuggler using the marked cards. But when the decks turn out to be old, unmarked ones, Beatty must use his wits instead of deception to win. The movie is insufferable, but it’s almost worth watching just for the big moment when the cards are revealed (a must-have staple of every poker film) and Beatty’s priceless reaction.
The Cincinnati Kid (1965, Norman Jewison)
This is the granddaddy, the Mona Lisa, le grand fromage, of poker movies. Jewison took over for Sam Peckinpah, and the movie could use more of Sam’s anachronisms and less of Jewison’s clichéd sentimentality. But this is compensated for by the presence of two of the finer vixens of the New Hollywood, Ann-Margret and Tuesday Weld—two beauties who make Cameron Diaz and Gwyneth Paltrow look like anorexic game show models.
There is also fine talent behind the camera. The New Orleans location photography by Philip H. Lathrop is first-rate, the script is by Terry Southern and Ring Lardner Jr. and Hal Ashby—who started out as an editor—deftly cuts between the banal romantic scenes and the more impressive poker sequences.
Steve McQueen plays the talented upstart who takes on the old master Edward G. Robinson in a marathon game of five-card stud. The tension-wracked final hand is worth watching again and again for a crash course in how to bluff and when to bet. When Robinson is scolded for making what appears to be a reckless raise, he sums up the game’s timeless, intractable appeal: “It’s gets down to what it’s all about… making the wrong move at the right time.”
For Thompson’s full article, visit http://www.moviemaker.com/directing/article/poker_movies_2967.
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COMMENTS | POST A COMMENT 
- Comment by Peter on 5/09/08 at 12:30 pm
Oh, I really love The Sting, but what would you expect with actors like Paul Newman robert Robert Redford. They are old school good solid actors! Hats of for them!
- Comment by KushMoney on 10/04/08 at 5:23 pm
Wow, I have seen any of these movies.
- Comment by Free Online Poker Guide on 10/14/08 at 8:25 pm
Poker movies are definitely the best! There are certainly many classics available....
- Comment by poker tips texas on 10/24/08 at 10:48 am
I am a big fan of poker movies. I know the new movie 21 was about blackjack, but I really like that one as well. Good post.
- Comment by advergaming on 1/14/09 at 12:48 am
Doesn’t James Bond Casino Royale make the cut? Lucky You starring Drew Barrymore and Eric Bana also is about some guys playing poker.
Nice post, though. I haven’t seen all of the above list. :)
- Comment by Online Poker Blog on 4/06/09 at 12:16 pm
I really need to see those movies.
- Comment by Rakeback Dan on 4/15/09 at 4:30 am
I saw ‘21’ just last week and thought it was an amazing film, thanks for the recommendations and I shall have to get my hands on some of these titles.
- Comment by Queen of D on 5/11/09 at 5:44 am
Wow this post is great, I’ve been looking for gambling movies lately since I saw Rounders and Casino. Think I’m gonna look The Sting first!
- Comment by Jake / The Rakeback Site on 5/13/09 at 10:39 am
I’m not sure that I agree with Mr. Thompson about Rounders, however, I’m probably biased (and he knows much more about movies than I ever will) :-)
I highly recommend that you read the entire article (this page is only an excerpt). It is pretty rare that you see someone who actually knows what he is talking about write about poker movies.
*Scuttles off to dig up a copy of Kaleidoscope*
- Comment by Mask on 7/02/09 at 7:23 am
I have seen Rounders movie some days ago. It’s really amazing movie about poker, about the destiny of poker players. Matt Daimon played his role very truthfully, I’m fond of his play.
- Comment by sergey on 9/16/09 at 9:27 am
I am a big fan of poker. This is my favorite game. Thank you for this info.
- Comment by Rufus on 9/29/09 at 6:02 am
Man...I’ve gotta hit the video store, I’ve only seen The Cincinnati Kid!
- Comment by Poker Movies on 10/07/09 at 2:17 am
If you play poker in real life you must see Rounders - Period. :-)
- Comment by 70-647 on 10/14/09 at 6:12 am
Poker Movie Review - The Grand
With poker booming as the nation’s new favorite “sport,” it was inevitable that Hollywood would cash in on the notoriety and create some grade poker B movies. In rhe past year, we’ve seen ESPN produce a poker drama series, and sat through a few pretty horrendous movies - two of the latest include the badly reviewed Lucky You and the upcoming Deal, starring the now intimidatingly old Mr. Burt Reynolds as a poker champion mentoring a young up and coming player. Deal will hit the theatres this April. Whereas poker movies of late have typically treated the focus and lifestyle of the poker world in a somewhat solemn manner, The Grand, also due to premiere next month, is an improvisational comedy about poker players competing in a tournament similar to the WSOP. In this tourney, the namesake of the movie, players compete for a ten million dollar prize and a winner-take-all format. Because The Grand approaches poker and its lifestyle in a blithe, jocular way, 70-236 the movie appeals to a wider audience. Diehard poker fans and comedy aficionados alike can appreciate the amusing, if somewhat erratic plot. The film employs a quasi-documentary, gonzo-style and spatters the laughs with plenty of poker celeb cameos along the way. Actually, beyond the lighthearted banter, what makes this flick enjoyable is its well-composed portrayal of poker personalities, and gaggle of fictional characters reminiscent of notorious poker players… with all their peculiar quirks and deficiencies. There are decent poker scenes and plenty of inside poker jopkes in this movie. The plot? There’s not much of one really - it’s more like a peek into the doings of a major tourney and an exposé of the craziness of the contestants. Some highlights recognized by this reviewer include Jack Faro, played by Woody Harrelson - always a delight - a complete dickhead who inherits a Vegas casino from his billionaire grandfather, and proceeds to run it into bankruptcy with an inherently bad business sense, neurotic addictions, and a penchant for doomed marriages. Another fun character is Harold Melvin (Chris Parnell), who is a total dork in his late 30’s, lives with his mother, and has never been laid in his life. He is extraordinary with numbers (obv) as well as annoyingly and raucously critical of other players. In one scene, he criticizes Daniel Negreanu (playing himself), telling him he “should have moved in when [his] stack still meant something.” 220-602 Cameos and small parts for poker players and poker-playing celebs include, Phil Hellmuth, Doyle Brunson, Phil Laak, Antonio Esfandiari, Shannon Elizabeth, and Robert Thompson as the tournament director> Also featured are Hank Azaria, Jason Alexander, and Phil Gordon playing a television poker analyst. Some reviewers have hinted that The Grand may be the best poker movie since Rounders, but I’d tend not to get that excited about it. There are a few chuckles, but between the cheating (which could obviously never occur in live tournament play) and the rambling plot line, the movie is an hour or so’s entertainment without a hell of a lot of substance. Worth the price of admission though - we give it a 3 out of 5.- Comment by firmalar on 11/27/10 at 4:10 am
Poker sciences generally ends with bloody fight!
- Comment by DavieAlvin on 12/21/11 at 5:11 pm
I’m not a really big fan of poker movies. I’m into gambling though. Being a very lucky person surely helps. I usually take advantage of it to win money. Experience taught me that horse racing betting is the best method of making money. I know some horse racing tips that I used the last couple of times and they earned me quite a big amount. I wanted to quit at some point because I don’t want this to turn into addiction but old habits die hard, that’s for sure!
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