by Brian Holegate
Casino movies have dominated the big screen for decades now, with many having strong ties to the mafia or spies. In fact, if you feel like watching a casino movie, the hardest decision you’ll need to make is narrowing it down to just one.
So, let us help you out with your selection and give you a list of the three most commercially successful casino movies of all time.
Casino Royale
If you figured there would be at least one James Bond movie on the list, you would have guessed right. Casino Royale was released in 2006, and this one will go down in the history books as one of the most expensive movies that have ever been made. Its final budget came in at approximately $150 million. That means it had to do really well in the box office just to break even.
And of course, James Bond came through for the win, and this movie ended up being a huge success. The movie made around $600 million and truly catapulted Daniel Craig to superstardom. This was his first round as Bond and he has gone on to play the spy character in a number of follow up movies.
Even though this was a pseudo remake of the original, it didn’t seem to stop people from coming out to watch it. And if anything is going to prompt you to hit the casino, even online versions like the Australian Casino, Casino Royale is the one to do it.
Casino
Now here’s a movie that mixes casino life with the mafia in a big way. Casino exploded onto the big screens in 1995. It starred such powerhouses as Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Joe Pesci, Sharon Stone, James Woods, and Don Rickles. The cast was nothing short of spectacular and the movie itself played out exactly how you would expect one of Martin Scorsese’s masterpieces to unfold.
This one is drama at the core but also unpredictable, dangerous, and all encompassing. Any fan of the casino themed movie genre has to place Casino at the top of their must-watch list. Taking place in Las Vegas during the 1970s and 1980s, it was all about the money, drugs, violence, sex, and casino life of the mob.
Ocean’s 11
Then we have Ocean’s 11, which is still very-much a casino-based movie, but this one has a totally different feel to it. It’s still got the drama, but there is also excitement, intrigue, mystery, and even comedy in there.
Again, this one is working with a spectacular cast of Hollywood A listers that came together to really feed off each other and produce something one-of-a-kind. The 2001 release starred George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Bernie Mac, Elliott Gould, Casey Affleck, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, and Carl Reiner just to name a few. This one follows a casino heist that is attempted by a group of “friends”, shall we say.
So, if you’re a fan of casino-themed movies, these three are ones you won’t want to miss.
They also spent a lot of money to create them.