Don't forget to check out what Wandering Through the Shelves picked, the blog that started Thursday Movie Picks.
I thought I'd seen a fair few films about gambling but it turns out I haven't. There seems to be more films about gamblers rather than gambling, but that's just my observation.
Maverick
I love Maverick, its such a fun watch. After I've exhausted my usual go to films when I'm feeling ill, Maverick is next up. I can't remember where or when I first saw this but I was hooked. Set in the old west, Maverick, is an excellent poker player but he's also a but of a coward and a talker. On his way to a big game where the prize money is $500,000, he is collecting whats owed to him by friends and also picks up a few travel companions. It's actually quite funny in places and you learn a little smidge about poker too. Mel Gibson take over the title role from James Garner, who played him in the TV show in 60s, but he also appears as a Marshall in the film. Great fun!
Saint John of Las Vegas
This was a film I saw the trailer for on Apple trailers and
hoped for a release in the UK but it never came. I eventually saw it on DVD and
although I’m a big fan of Steve Buscemi, this had an ambiguous ending that made
me feel flat and trapped at the same time. This is how we start and end with
Saint John of Las Vegas about a bad gambler who moves miles away from
temptation and works for an insurance company. But he is tested when he has to
investigate a possible fraudulent claim back in Las Vegas. There are some
amusing moments and really, Steve Buscemi (along with Romany Malco) make the
film entertaining to watch.
The Cooler
Bought on a whim and because I liked the cast, plus it was Tartan DVD, I watched The Cooler. William H Macy is Bernie aka The Cooler, employed by casino owner Shelly (Alec Baldwin) who he is also in debt to, has the job of cooling down a winner's table. But Bernie has almost paid off his debts so Shelly pays waitress Maria Bello, Natalie to seduce him into staying, but the two fall in love. What with the arrival of Bernie's son and his wife in town, things start to go wrong. The film has grit with some quite nasty scenes and really is a story about losing to winning but with other sad things in the middle.
