The Cooler (2004)

The premise of this swinging Vegas picture is enough to carry it over its narrative rough spots. The unluckiest sap on the planet (William H. Macy) is employed as a "cooler" at a casino; his very presence can chill the hot streak of any patron on a roll. He's valued by the old-school manager of the place, a role given a two-fisted, bourbon-swilling incarnation by Alec Baldwin. Macy means to quit, but then he falls for a waitress (the excellent Maria Bello, from Permanent Midnight)--might his luck be changing? The subplots are pretty much a mess, but the frank sex scenes between Macy and Bello give the movie a truly offbeat feel. The tawdry air of a second-rate casino is also nicely done: This is not the new family-friendly Las Vegas, but a tough place of superstitions, sinister back rooms, and shabby motels. The characters are perfectly at home. --Robert Horton Amazon.com

Average

Maria Bello is 1 of the sexiest & most interesting actresses around. She's not a superstar, but consistently delivers the goods in films not worthy of her talents. Perhaps the only vehicle I've ever seen that did her talents justice is the cult tv series Nowhere Man- where she appeared in an episode as the lead character's love interest. In The Cooler, she portrays Natalie Belisario- a Vegas cocktail waitress at the Shangri-La casino, hired by casino boss Shelly Kaplow (Alec Baldwin) to seduce the casino's `cooler'- fellow hired to bring bad luck to people on hot streaks- Bernie Lootz (William H. Macy) into not quitting his job at the end of a week, after paying himself out of Kaplow's debt.
Basically, Bello's the only real reason to watch the film- her acting as the waitress who falls in love with Bernie is believable, given the somewhat convoluted tale. Her background of being treated like crap makes her easily fall for the luckless, but decent Bernie, thus into Shelly's bad graces. At the Oscars this year Baldwin boasted of stealing his tough Mafioso performance from Ben Kingsley's turn as Don Logan in Sexy Beast, & it's true. Baldwin's character is acting throughout, not Baldwin. There isn't an ounce of true menace in his character, whereas Kingsley's character exuded it from the back of his bald head.... Although the film's main character is Macy's Bernie, & Baldwin got the Oscar nod, the only thing likely to stick in your mind about this mediocre film is Bello's performance, for- unlike the other characters- hers is the only 1 which rises above its characterization. If only the film could have kept pace.
September 19, 2008

WOW

Like so many good movies, I never heard of it when it was in theaters and instead read a review somewhere or another. Then, when I was looking for something in the video store to watch I saw it and remembered having read about it. I'll tell you, it was probably a chance to see Maria Bello that also had me interested in it but I'm glad that I chose to watch it. This movie ranks up there with some of my favorites. The story is a good one but even better is the cenamtic effects that they slowly attempt to alter the viewers perception with. I'm not a cinema buff like my sister but I know a good movie when I see it and this one is definately one of my new favorites.

Thank you for entertaining me. September 5, 2008

" The Cooler "

There is " Casino " and " Ocean's Eleven ( 2001 ), and now " The Cooler ".The beginning of the movie you get a breath taking view of Las Vegas at night.You can feel the excitement of the Casino as you descend down the escalator.This is one of many favorite scenes. A-1 performances,excellent dialogs.No dull moments. The soundtrack makes it feel you are actually there.
Get this movie.Pretend you are playing the Slots or the Table games.Make sure you see The Cooler. June 11, 2008

The Brothers Grimm take on Las Vegas

I loved the fairy tale genre when I was a little kid. It took me a while to realize that The Cooler is a (semi) modern fairy tale. It has a prince (of a guy) played by Bill Macy who is in thrall to an evil demon (played by Alec Baldwin). The poor prince is rescued by a brave maiden (Maria Bello).

As in all fairy tales, the demon is destroyed by his own evil. The price and maiden leave town, richer than before, ready to start over in a distant land. August 20, 2007

Two main themes: luck, and the struggle between the Old and New Vegas

The Cooler stars William H. Macy the loveable loser Bernie Lootz, a downtrodden Las Vegas resident with a bad streak of luck at gambling. In order to pay off a debt to the crooked thug manager of the Shangri-La casino (played by Alec Baldwin), Bernie works for seven years as a casino "cooler." He's a man of such bad luck that the manager pays him to visit tables and kill large winning streaks. Just Bernie's presence is enough to ruin anyone's luck.

When Bernie's time is up, he plans to leave Las Vegas for good. The Shangri-La manager has other plans--how could he let his secret casino moneymaker walk? Manager Shelly conspires to keep Bernie around with a love interest, a cocktail waitress with a checkered past (played by Maria Bello). When Bernie and the waitress fall in love, his luck changes, throwing the world of the Shangri-La in turmoil.

The Cooler is about two main themes: luck, and the struggle between the Old and New Vegas. The idea that one man can ruin anyone's streak is ridiculous, but it plays out well in the movie, and Maria Bello's character fits as a fairy tale princess who changes Bernie's outlook on life. Throughout the movie, Shelly is struggling with new casino management who want to modernize the Shangri-La, stop using coolers and back room thugs to keep the action in line, and move into more subliminal marketing strategies. Shelly has a fantasy about the elegance of Old Vegas and is unwilling to give up his kingdom in the Shangri-La.

William H. Macy and Mario Bello deliver top-notch performances in this dark romantic movie. Alec Baldwin overacts at times, but still captures the essence of a man unwilling to give up the only world he knows, that of the Shrangri-La.
May 18, 2007

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