Hollywood and the Casino were love at first sight. Both feature blinding lights, lots of money on the table, invite stars from all walks of life, and adoring spectators looking in from the outside. Besides watching your favorite movie star rock his tuxedo mutter the words “all in” under his breath as he throws in his chips to win the game in the last few scenes, the following are other reasons why this union has lasted a while and will probably go on for much longer:
Who does not love a Heist movie?
“I’m assembling a team. Are you in?!”
You immediately know you’re seated for one heist classic. Heist movies are very popular because of the roller coaster of emotions from start to finish. From gathering supplies to executing the plan to the many twists and backstabbings, you just never know what you’re in for until the credits roll.
It’s not all straightforward either; you get to learn to a degree the type of safeguards these casinos have in store to protect their patrons, their funds, and themselves. Sometimes, it cascades to other casino gambling submarkets, with the online variants being one of the more popular. You see how they have adapted technologies like cryptocurrency, blockchain and artificial intelligence to keep users safe online. Echecks are one of the more recent additions in the industry; secure casinos for canadian players offer gamblers familiarity and unwavering security combined.
Unlike in real life where security measures are virtually unbreakable, in movies the protagonists (or antagonists, depending on whose side you’re on) have to crack these defenses, making it an incredible watch, a popcorn dropper, and a soda spiller. It is little wonder that many of the best heist movies involve casinos.
Discover New Worlds
It’s important to note that movies are not intended to be educational material wherein you take everything portrayed as gospel. Nowhere else will you find people jumping off buildings or siring dragons to raze down villages by the mere mention of the word “dracarys.” However, there are often times when movies, even without meaning to, educate the users on the happenings in the world and sometimes what the future might hold.
In some legal movies, you learn things about the law, gain a better understanding of your rights, and learn how to handle yourself in certain situations. It is the same with casino movies. For people who have never been to Macau or the Vegas Strip, watching actors work their magic is good practice, and they will flock to the cinemas when the movie is released, which is good for the movie’s producers.
Explores the Human Condition
While not for everybody, the risk apparent in most casino movies, how much is at stake at every hand, appeals to the competitive nature of being human. No more so is this the case than in situations where the protagonist is playing for something more than money. It could be to defeat an old boss, to claw back some respect they had previously lost, and, in the case of 007, to save a damsel in distress. Whatever it might be, knowing how much is at stake and seeing the hero navigate it can be a fulfilling watch for many.
Another way to look at it is that these movies serve as an expose into the minds of real-time gamblers, with “High Roller: The Stu Ungar Story” readily coming to mind. Many times, what we know about these people is when they suffer great wins and great losses, but we never see the mental battles they fight in private, the things they navigate in their everyday personal lives, or how insurmountable their odds often are. These movies allow us to look into their world without any bias or malice.
Money is involved!
While not unique to casino movies, very few movies show us the lavish lifestyle of billionaire playboys in their designer suits and Rolexes worth a couple of tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars. The opulence displayed in every scene, the private jet charters, fast cars, and bikini-clad models, is often a good enough reason to drive people to the cinema in droves.
Movies are fun, even more so when there’s a lot of danger, on-your-seat action throughout combined with immersive acting and dialogue by Hollywood’s finest, all of which are on display in most casino movies. So the next time you’re seated to watch a casino movie, you will do so knowing exactly why you find it gripping.
Main image: https://www.pexels.com/photo/clapper-board-in-green-surface-5662857/
