Of all the games in the world, not one is full of as many secrets, romance and intrigue as poker. It doesn’t matter if a person is in a Vegas casino, attending a high stakes session in the back room of a nightclub, or playing away with his best friend, poker is the most exciting intellectual process. It's easy to learn and understand the rules, but it takes a lifetime to achieve mastery. Is it any wonder that so many good poker movies have been made?
Poker Movies
The casino is often the dramatic backdrop for many all-or-nothing scenes in the brilliant world of cinema: whether it's a thoughtful look, a person looking at a deck of cards, or a stone face that exacerbates tension.
Winning in poker is not just about having the right cards, as many who have not the best deal win in many poker games. Poker is half a bluff, and if a person can convince his opponent that he has better cards in his hands, even if this is not the case, he still has a good chance of winning. Therefore, watching poker movies can tell a little about the art of bluffing.
Making a basic list of films about poker and casino games that have ever adorned the big screen is a classic topic of debate. Everyone has their own favorites, often based on the first impression of films, which a person can watch again and again until he learns each line by heart.
Starting with the classic Cincinnati Kid movie (1965) and ending with the more modern poker movie Big Game (2018), viewers saw a lot of unexpected twists, high stakes, loan sharks and scammers.
1. “Cincinnati Kid” (1965)
This film is a classic of gambling. He tells the story of a young guy in New Orleans who is trying to win the title of best poker player of all time, which leads him to Lancy Howard, the current title holder. Cincinnati Kid is a must-see for every true poker fan, as well as anyone who just wants to watch a good movie. It's a bit outdated, but it wins the main pillars for a realistic description of the game and, possibly, the most epic look in any film. Some call it the best poker movie of all time.
2. "Big jackpot for a little lady" (1966)
Despite being an old-school film, it is still among the top gambling films. The largest high-stakes game in the West has attracted the attention of a man named Meredith. The Henry Foundation plays a poor farmer who rides on a road through town to buy land. Despite not being the best poker player, he puts all his assets at stake to enter the game against the richest guys, despite his wife’s protests. In the process of losing all the savings of his family, he has a heart attack, which causes his spouse to take a place in the game.
Best quote: “Listen, mister, the first rule of poker, whether you play according to Eastern or Western rules, or the type that is adopted at the North Pole, is to put up or shut up!”
3. "Scam" (1973)
This poker movie is an absolute classic. Although he does not show many modern techniques, he gives a good idea of another aspect of the poker world that people find fascinating. This is a fraud. Henry Gondorff, played by Paul Newman, knows that the only way to defeat renowned poker rogue Doyle Lonnegan, played by excellent Robert Shaw, is to become a better cheater than him.
The film may be a little dated, but this is another classic that received 7 Oscars back in 1974.
4. "Shuler" (1998)
Many say that in the past few decades there would have been no poker boom if it hadn't been for this film with Matt Damon and Edward Norton in the lead roles. The plot is centered around a player (Damon) who is embroiled in a high stakes poker game to help his friend pay off his debt. The film gives an idea of the underground world of high-stakes poker in New York. And although he received several mixed reviews from critics, experts on this card game tend to put Shulers into some of the best poker films.
5. "Maverick" (1994)
While Cincinnati Kid and Shuler take poker seriously, Maverick takes a more frivolous approach to the game. This is a comedy directed by Richard Donner, based on a television series called the film. The plot of this picture with Mel Gibson in the lead role is concentrated around a poker game in which Gibson plays Bret Maverick - a card player and a fraudster who collects money to participate in a high-stakes game. True poker professionals and fans will see how unrealistic some aspects of the game are (for example, a royal flush that does not win a straight flush), but this does not detract from the dignity of a film that has grossed more than $ 183 million worldwide. The film was shot on the basis of the 1960s television show of the same name.
6. The “Player” (2014)
The “player” starring James Caan is a small cautionary tale of pitfalls. Kaan plays a professor of literature at New York University, who is fond of gambling and takes the wrong path, borrowing money from everyone he knows, which ultimately leads him to trouble and showdown with the bad guys. The film is based on Dostoevsky’s novel “The Player”. It has a lot of poker, and it will be interesting to all fans of this game. In 2014, a remake of "The Player" was filmed, in which the main role was played with Mark Wahlberg. But it is best to watch the original.
7. The Big Game (2017)
The Big Game poker movie (2017) is the true story of Molly Bloom, an Olympic-class skier who managed the most exclusive high-stakes poker game in the world and became the target of the FBI.
Even in spite of the script, the cast is already astounding: Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Michael Cera, Samantha Isler and Kevin Costner, not to mention screenwriter and director Aaron Sorkin. But having such a strong roster does not make this poker movie the best automatically.
The Big Game is based on a true story. Molly Bloom's skiing career ends abruptly with a back injury that she suffered in the qualifying tournament at the 2002 Winter Olympics. Instead of continuing her studies at law school, she takes a break for a year, moves to Los Angeles and takes a job as a waitress in a club. But thanks to her boss, she quickly launches underground poker games for the rich and famous, and then she creates her own games, attracting the famous clientele.
Separately, viewers, of course, saw many similar twists and stories earlier in this genre, but there was never such an ideal combination of a rich plot with top-level actors as in this 2017 poker movie.
Hollywood drew attention to the game long before poker became more widely accepted among the masses. Over the years, various films have included him in their stories. Sometimes there is nothing better than forgetting everything, plunging into a good movie, and these films about the game of poker are a great choice for any fan of this card game.