Casinos add suspense to any story, whether it’s a heist or an ignominious fade into the desert, tense poker tournaments or sultry card-game scenes. And they sound fun too, with their clinking chips and shuffling cards.
On this episode of Wise Kracks, we’re joined by Bill Krackomberger and Jon Orlando as they dive into what it’s like to gamble in Vegas, from their all-time favourite video poker plays to what the best way is to ask the casino for complimentary food.
Las Vegas
Las Vegas – one of the biggest tourist attractions in the world – is famous for its upscale casinos and hotels and for the performances of such artists as Christina Aguilera, Shania Twain and Garth Brooks.
This documentary about Las Vegas casino crime gives us a history of the gambling Mecca told from the perspective of several infamous casino heists, with interviews from former security employees describing how casino staff let in skilled criminals who would access surveillance systems and exploit the vulnerabilities of machines to carry out the heists.
And documentaries provide a riveting sense of the sordid world of high-stakes gambling at home rather than the casino at a distance – showing the risks along with the rewards as part of an extremely dangerous but thrilling pastime. From the legends of the poker table to shifty young businessmen who suddenly become billionaire success stories, these are escapist true stories revealed through fascinating on-the-spot accounts of epic defeat and wild victory, rounding up the risks that shape the thrills and the dangers of high-stakes gambling, showing the price of hubris and the appeal of strategy games.
Casino Royale
Through blazing card-playing sequences, Fleming provides readers with thrills and suspense in his baccarat duels between James and Le Chiffre. And hence, this Jamesian thread demonstrates one of many concepts Fleming used to appeal to readers’ mindset and, no doubt, keep readers reading until the last page.
Directed by Martin Campbell and adapted from Ian Fleming’s original novel of the same year (1953), Casino Royale (2006) was Daniel Craig’s first outing as 007, and the 21st James Bond movie produced by Eon Productions. It was both a critical and box-office success, and has been praised for the way it has not merely recast but recreated the Bond franchise for the 21st century. Funded by a £30-million grant from the UK government, the film signalled a return to the grittiness of Bond’s roots. It remained faithful in many respects to the original novel and (contrary to its cartoony predecessor) seriously engaged with the important relationship between the adult character of James Bond and his mixed feelings for Vesper Lynd.
You are cordially invited to attend a night of world-class style and glamour and a world-class evening of philanthropy – win big while helping The Arc of San Diego support children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Revel in a black tie dinner complete with wine pairings, live jazz band and casino games.
The Devil’s Gambit
Out on the casino floor, among all the dreamers who gamble for fun, stands an elite group: the high rollers. When these dreamers stake large wagers, they change the world of Vegas in unpredictable ways.
It is the extreme ambience, branding and risk-management of casinos that brings people in. Their stories are as enlightening as they are sensationalistic in staring into the conflicted heart of casino culture.
Documentaries might paint the gritty reality of the underworld, yet are often enveloped in an exciting narrative as action-filled as the lurid stories preferred by US casino operators, in which the protagonist finds himself embroiled in the launderette. His life could be in peril: perhaps he’s trying to stop the Mafia who illegally take over a casino, participating in handytight poker action alongside them to emphasise his role in establishing boundaries and norms around social behaviour, whether on or off the casino floor.
The Gambler
The Gambler gives the audience the chance to learn not only that the ability to know when to stay and take a hand and when to walk away is an important life lesson for any businessman but also for the poker player alike. Furthermore, the winning hand in business and in life is the courage to take a risk with a good plan.
In this remake of a 1974 film, the Hollywood star Mark Wahlberg plays an academic who doubles as a big-time gambler; gambling as an addiction and as danger are dramatised; a film to watch with children and students; it is a must-see for gamblers and students of gambling; the film is a wonderful story of calculated risk-taking, of strategy; a must-watch for all gamblers out there – or students of gambling. A movie that you will pay for and not regret I hope you enjoyed this story.