Casino – The Dark Side of Las Vegas and the Mafia

Casino explores the dark side of Las Vegas and the Mafia. It’s not a movie for the faint of heart, but it is fascinating. It’s also the best depiction of the mob’s relationship with Vegas casinos in any movie. Robert De Niro and Sharon Stone give remarkable performances as the corrupt duo running the mafia’s casinos in Vegas during this period.

The film has a great energy and pacing, with an eye for detail that sets the period perfectly. This includes things like the way that a low-level mobster orders his cooks to put exactly the right number of blueberries in each muffin, or the airborne feds circling a golf course while watching a high-level hood skim thousands of dollars from slot machines. The story of how these mobster-owned casinos cheated the feds is gripping, and the violent scenes – including torture by vice, a car bombing, and the death by overdose of Stone’s character – aren’t gratuitous. They are a true reflection of the violent world in which these characters lived.

If you want to play at a casino, try to avoid the free drinks. These aren’t offered out of charity; the casino knows that you will lose money and it’s counting on tipsy players to spend more than they can afford. If you are gambling, set a budget for how much you can spend and stick to it. Whether you’re playing blackjack or roulette, it’s important to make your decisions rationally, not emotionally. If you’re losing, it’s better to leave than to continue gambling in the hope of a miracle comeback.