The thrill of gambling has been a passion for millenia. Dating back to ancient China, we never seem to move past our love of an adrenaline rush that comes from placing a bet and winning it. Gambling has evolved at an incredible rate, and has now become one of the largest industries on the planet:
As a fundamental factor in the entertainment world, gambling has intertwined frequently with other major entertainment sectors, including books, video games, TV and movies.
Television entertainment giants, like Netflix, are well aware of the international enthusiasm the world has towards gaming and betting, programming some of the best gambling/casino related movies ever released.
These movies are a great way to teach the ups and downs of betting in general and a pleasurable way for
gambling lovers to 'get their fix'.
Today, many people get their fix without having to actually visit a casino, by playing on a gambling website, where it can be much safer and a lot cheaper.
Guns, Girls and Gambling
The 2012 crime based thriller, "Guns, Girls & Gambling", written and directed by Michael Winnick, stars Christian Slater, Gary Oldman, Helena Mattsson, Dane Cook, Megan Park, Chris Kattan, Powers Boothe, Jeff Fahey, Eddie Spears, Michael Spears and Tony Cox, set in an Indian Casino, where 5 'Elvis' impersonators enter a contest and end up playing a long game of poker long after the contest is finished.
Main protagonist, 'John Smith' (Christian Slater), loses miserably and after dozing off, finds himself in a difficult situation where his wallet is stolen and he is accused of stealing a priceless ancient artifact, which the casino boss offers $1,000,000 to whoever brings back.
This plot twist leads to an epic, thrill-ride that involves a killer called 'The Blonde', and an action packed chase to the death to get the Elvis impersonator who stole that Native American mask.
This movie brings big surprises and sends viewers on an
awesome adventure, while teaching a very valuable life lesson, which is, don’t ever steal from a
casino.
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
The 1998 classic, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", is written and directed by Terry Gilliam, starring Johnny Depp, Benicio Del Toro, Hunter S.Thompson, Tobey Maguire, Ellen Barkin, Mark Harmon, Cameron Diaz, Christina Ricci and a whole lot more.
It’s based on a crazy drive across the Mojave desert in a red convertible, with 'Raoul Duke' (Depp) and his lawyer 'Dr. Gonzo '(Del Toro), as they try to get to Las Vegas as fast as possible to cover a motorcycle race while carrying a suitcase full of drugs. They end up consuming more drugs than any sane person should in a lifetime, and their consumption keeps increasing, till they trash a hotel room and fear the legal consequences.
Duke starts driving back to his hometown Los Angeles, until he comes across a police officer (Gary Busey), then ends back in Vegas to carry on his crazy drug run.
This truly is a must-watch for anyone who loves sex, drugs and Rock 'n Roll.
Rounders
Another classic gambling movie from 1998, "Rounders", isn’t just a poker movie, it’s THE poker movie. Directed by John Dahl, starring Edward Norton, Matt Damon, Gretchen Mol, John Malkovich, John Tuturro and Famke Janssen, this film is based on the world of underground poker, where protagonist 'Mike McDermott' (Matt Damon), loses a poker game against Russian gangster (John Malkovich) and winds up broke.
This leads Mike to being pressured by his partner 'Jo' (Gretchen Mol), to quit his gambling addiction. All goes well until a friend of his named 'Lester' (Edward Norton), comes out of prison and is in need of some money urgently to pay off some nasty debts. The pair then end up heading back into the world of underground gambling, where they both get lucky in more ways than one...
Now that's entertainment...
