Casino (1995)

Director Martin Scorsese reunites with members of his GoodFellas gang (writer Nicholas Pileggi; actors Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Frank Vincent) for a three-hour epic about the rise and fall of mobster Sam "Ace" Rothstein (De Niro), a character based on real-life gangster Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal. (It's modeled after on Wiseguy and GoodFellas and Pileggi's true crime book Casino: Love and Honor in Las Vegas.) Through Rothstein, the picture tells the story of how the Mafia seized, and finally lost control of, Las Vegas gambling. The first hour plays like a fascinating documentary, intricately detailing the inner workings of Vegas casinos. Sharon Stone is the stand out among the actors; she nabbed an Oscar nomination for her role as the voracious Ginger, the glitzy call girl who becomes Rothstein's wife. The film is not as fast paced or gripping as Scorsese's earlier gangster pictures (Mean Streets and GoodFellas), but it's still absorbing. And, hey--it's Scorsese! --Jim Emerson Amazon.com essential video

Goodfellas Lite

Overall, this is a pretty good film, although there are some flaws. De Niro, Pesci, Stone and Woods are all excellent. Scorcese makes the usual gratuitous use of violence. I'm not sure we needed to see the head in the vice or the bludgeoning w/ baseball bats. Ace Rothstein's approach to handicapping isn't believable: he'd check the wind to gauge field goals and the type of wood on basketball floors to gauge the bounces. Also, the problems in the marriage of Ace and Ginger seem to have been played out in too many scenes w/ redundancy. The movie was probably about 30 minutes too long, but still worth seeing... July 16, 2008

A Clasic

The movie Casino is an insite into when the mob gained controll of a casino. Robert De Niro takes controll of the casino to run it his way onlyand he is tough. Huge amounts of cash are funneld back to the mob. Joe Pesi tries to mussell in and he plays a great part. You get to see the cons trying to beat the tables, Rulett, and the machines. Definately a DVD to own. M Innes Australia. June 19, 2008

Scorsese,Deniro & Pesci deliver again

Casino has to be one of the most underrated films that Martin Scorsese directed in the nineties. The acting by the leads is good and the script is excellent. Robert Deniro gave an Oscar worthy performance and Joe Pesci is chilling yet funny again. Even Sharon Stone is good in this brilliant film. March 26, 2008

Excellent portrayals shine

Martin Scorsese's fascination with America's crime scene examines low-life in Las Vegas in Casino. Though long, this movie remains one of The Master's less heralded production, and I can't figure out why.

Robert DiNiro, Sharon Stone, and Joe Pesci all put in admirable performances. For me, it is impossible to delineate whose is superior. DiNiro's eastern cowboy, Stone's addicted, insecure hustler, and Pesci's violent punk all shine with acing eloquence and nuance.

The picture is pretty -- there's no other way to say it. And, as always, Scorsese's use of contenmporary music creates a soundtrack that tells a part of the story by itself.

This gem has been polished up in this presentation to the point that it shines like it was meant to. The seventies never looked so good. January 1, 2008

could have been better...

Although i considered Casino a very good movie, it had its flaws and definately is one of Martin Scorcese's lesser films from that which he has produced in the past. This coming from a big Scorcese fan mind you :D.

Performance wise the film is flawless Robert Deniro and Joe Pesci deliver the goods as always and drive the film into depth so much more than if someone else were to play the parts. Also Sharron Stone delivers a rare great performance through the directing of Martin scorcese.

Based upon The crumbling of the mobs casino organisation, this movie dwelves into the day by day events that occur within the casino. All the misfits, scammers and what happens to those caught ripping off from the mobs money.
When things start to go wrong robert deniro, joe pesci and sharron stone's characters start to create conflict amongst one another and things only become worse as the mobster world begins to crumble.

The film has a great story and great visuals, the only problem i found within the film was i was a little thrown off by the constant voice over dialogue. In some scenes it is horribly misplaced and in some others it has been used in ways which were unneccesary and could have been told through the visual storytelling.

None the less Casino is a good film and i suggest that you should certainly watch it especially if you are a scorcese fan =). December 20, 2007

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