Casino Review
Casinos are fun, exciting places that offer a mix of gambling and entertainment. They usually feature lavish decor and lots of glitz and glamour. There are also plenty of restaurants and bars, live music and stage shows. The atmosphere is intoxicating and a rush of adrenaline runs through your body as you try out your luck at games like poker or roulette.
Gambling patrons aren’t stupid and they know that the odds of winning or losing are stacked against them. Yet they’re willing to make that gamble anyway. They want to feel the thrill of victory and they love to mingle with other gamblers in an upbeat environment. The music is loud and coins clink as players laugh and talk. It’s a scene that’s hard to replicate outside of a casino.
Martin Scorsese’s Casino focuses on the darker side of gambling and the people who make it their careers. The movie features no good guys, as each character is mired in treachery and greed. But that doesn’t detract from the film’s effectiveness, as it remains a lean and tight thriller until the end. In fact, it’s one of the director’s longest movies yet he never allows it to lag or run out of steam. Even though there are a few scenes of hellacious violence (like the popped eyeball and baseball bat beatings), Scorsese is not interested in exploiting these characters for sensationalism or to make a point. The violence is there to add drama and tension and it works beautifully.