It’s lights, camera, and action in this latest edition of the CasinoBeats 100 Club as we delve into some of the greatest casino moments to hit the silver screen.
Ahead of the summer blockbuster period, and coming off the back of probably the most controversial Oscars moment in the Academy’s history, we thought this would be the perfect moment to ask our 100 Club members their most favourite film scenes that involve casino.
I will kick start us off with my worst and best casino scene:
The worst casino scene by far, and probably the worst within the franchise, is in Star Wars: The Last Jedi where Finn and Rose go to the desert world of Cantonica to find the code-breaker who is located within the casino city called Canto Bight.
Though visually stunning, that section of the film is just a narrative cul-de-sac and, if removed from the film, the outside would more or less be the same.
Now the best scene has to be from 1996’s Swingers, starring Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn where two wannabe actors attempt to show their worth at the high rollers table as they sit down at the blackjack table and lose $300 in one hand.
Henrik Fagerlund, COO at Raw iGaming, stated that, for him, it has to be a James Bond film and stated that there is “no more iconic casino scene than in 1983’s Octopussy.
He explained: “While we are used to seeing Bond flex his muscles to beat his enemies, in this scene, it is his intellectual might and his understanding of the rules of backgammon that allow him to outwit villain Kamal who had been using loaded dice to defeat other opponents. Bond uses a quirk of the game whereby you can use an opponent’s dice to defeat Kamal.
“There is nothing like beating someone at their own game and no one does it with more style than James Bond who in Octopussy is played by the legend that is Sir Roger Moore.”
Another one of our members, Allan Petrilli, VP of Sales & Growth at Intelitics, noted that Martin Scorsese’s 1995 film Casino, starring Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Sharon Stone, has endless great casino scenes, yet highlighted the cowboy scene.
He commented: “For me – it’s the scene in Casino when Robert De Niro has the cowboy kicked out of the casino for being disrespectful.”
Victor Pronk, CCO at Incentive Games, also remained in Las Vegas and highlighted The Hangover scene where Zach Galifianakis enters down the escalator and, well, we all know the rest.
He stated: “That is easy. The Hangover where Alan (Zach) looks like Rain Man coming the escalator.”
Helen Walton, Founder and CCO at G.Games, went in another direction to our members and, though still a casino game, it took place outside of Vegas and a legitimate brick-and-mortar property and went to the dark backdrop of a back alley boxing ring in the middle of London.
She concluded: “Is it just casino? It has to be the poker game in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels – best high drama card playing ever put on film in my view!”
