How many times have you watched a movie about gambling? For us, the number is pretty high, and we’ve recently rediscovered our love for them and the luxurious life full of secrets and risks they depict. The allure of the gambling world is undeniably powerful, so it’s fun to pretend to be part of it, even if it’s just through a movie.
However, it’s not exactly clear how big a role reality plays in casino movies. Did the most successful gamblers of our time really live like that? Was their life as dangerous and exciting as it seems?
A quick internet search revealed that most of our favorite gambling flicks are at least partially fictional, if not entirely so. Where does the dazzling life we see in films come from, then? What about the real gambling geniuses – aren’t they famous, living the high life?
As Mulder would say, the truth is out there, and we managed to find it: There have been many famous gamblers throughout history, and some of them live on in stories. In fact, we were relieved to find out that some of our favorite casino movies were based on real-life events.
We listed them here and couldn’t resist telling you a bit about them, too. Read on to learn about the best reality-inspired casino movies.
“Casino” (1995)
Learning that this story is at least partially true put a huge smile on our faces. After all, Martin Scorcese’s dramatic thriller “Casino” is probably one of the most famous gambling movies of all time.
The real-life background of this masterpiece is the story of Las Vegas casino boss Frank ‘Lefty’ Rosenthal and the Chicago mobster Anthony Spilotro. In the 70s, Rosenthal was deeply connected with the criminal underworld, running four illegal casinos with his childhood friend Anthony. The story of how he eventually lost control of his unlicensed business mixes fiction and reality, but the emotions, love, and betrayals feel very real.
“21” (2008)
Great movies are often based on even better books, and “21” is a prime example of this. Inspired by the book “Bringing Down The House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions,” this casino flick will certainly take you for a ride.
The story follows the life of six MIT students who, guided by their math professor, started taking down Las Vegas casinos using an intricate card-counting system for winning in blackjack. The book refers to some of the members by name, revealing at one point that there were more than fifty card counters involved! Like any other movie, the story takes all the exciting elements from reality and then adds just a touch of fiction to make the plot twists much more incredible.
“Eight Men Out” (1988)
You’d think this one doesn’t count as a gambling movie, but the real-life scandal of the Chicago White Sox in the infamous 1919 World Series games against the Cincinnati Reds started with some folks taking betting to a whole new level.
The movie follows the events of the 1919 championship and the eight disgruntled professional baseball players who took payoffs from gamblers to throw the games. The White Sox ended up losing, of course, and the scandal broke soon after. It’s not your traditional high-powered casino movie, but it will show you how even the best players from one of the best baseball teams in America could be lured away from their passion with a promise of easy money.
“Molly’s Game” (2017)
The most recent film on this list and one we can heartily recommend is “Molly’s Game.” Another movie based on a book, its story comes from Molly Bloom’s autobiography “Molly’s Game: The True Story of the 26-Year-Old Woman Behind the Most Exclusive, High-Stakes Underground Poker Game in the World.”
The namesake lead character rises through the ranks as a hostess and a dealer for high-stakes poker games played by the New York elite. Little by little, the games get bigger and more illegal, and it’s not long before trouble comes a-knocking on Molly’s door.
The games involved celebrities whose names weren’t mentioned, but their identities are practically an open secret if the internet is to be believed. “Molly’s Game” shows how skirting the edge of the criminal world with powerful people can turn upside-down, changing from something profitable to something incredibly dangerous at the drop of a hat.
If you are interested in the gambling scene and the numerous stories behind it, don’t miss out on these movies. You’ll enjoy the blinding casino lights, learn plenty, and maybe even see gambling from a new perspective – we know we did.
Irwin Fletcher
I'm an LA journalist who really lives for his profession. I have also published work as Jane Doe in various mags and newspapers across the globe. I normally write articles that can cause trouble but now I write for FTN because Nerds are never angry, so I feel safe.
Nerd Comments