CASINO
A film review by Ben Hoffman
Copyright 1997 Ben Hoffman
"Running a casino is like robbing a bank with no cops around.
For guys like me, Las Vegas washes away your sins. It's like a morality
car wash."
--Sam "Ace" Rothstein
In Casino, director Martin Scorsese takes a good look at those who run Las Vegas' casinos as well as the also-rans. The thought that some 30 million people visit Las Vegas each year (and, I confess to being one of them), is enough to make you sick at heart. You may win now and then but in the final computation everyone is a loser. Of course, that does not include the gangsters who run the casinos. For them it's a gold mine.
Scorsese's film is based on the real life story (from Nicholas Pileggi's book) of Sam "Ace" Rothstein, a big time bookie, who was sent to Las Vegas by "the mob" to find out who was stealing, who tinkered with the mechanisms of slot machines so they would win huge jackpots, and to put a stop to it, as well as watch that the blackjack dealers were kept honest. Oddly, you are left with a lot of empathy for Rothstein (Robert De Niro) largely because the way he plays his role and Scorsese's direction.
While Rothstein may have known everything there was to know about gambling, drugs, prostitution, alcohol. etc. he nevertheless falls heavily for Ginger McKenna (Sharon Stone). He even goes so far as to marry her, while she becomes a drug and alcohol user. This bodes no good for Ace. I do not think it did much for Sharon Stone, either, as I felt she was miscast.
There is one other main character, Nicky (Joe Pesci), a childhood friend of Ace, but too much of a trigger-happy mobster. Pesci runs away with the film as he bends all his efforts to take over the operations from his pal, Ace.
Also in the cast but in smaller roles are Alan King, James Woods, Don Rickles L Q Jones and Kevin Pollak.
Scorsese has succeeded in once again making an exciting film
but it would not have hurt one iota if a half hour had been
edited out along the way.
3.5 bytes
4 bytes = Superb 3 bytes = Too good to be missed 2 bytes = So so 1 byte = Save your money
Ben Hoffman
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