Tips on Awesome Gambling Movies

2021-01-02

Eddy Cheung

Enjoy relaxing with motion pictures? Enjoy motion pictures where your gambling and betting fantasies come alive in the actions of characters? Well, here are a number of the best gambling movies which we believe will align with your specific wants. If you’ve seen them, great! If you have not, grab a pack of popcorn and get comfortable because you are definitely in for a long interesting ride.

Here is a selection of carefully analyzed movies which have in them elements of Poker and Casino style games, so enjoy!

Rounders (1998)

The movie Rounders stars Matt Damon, Edward Norton, Gretchen Mol and was directed by John Dahl. This movie, written by David Levien and Brian Koppelman reveals the innermost gambling sites in New York. The movie tells the story of Mike McDermott (Matt Damon) who enters a game against Russian mobster Teddy (John Malkovich) and loses his life savings and tuition in less than 5 minutes.

This happens to be a life-changing one for Mike as he decided to quit playing for good. He then decides to go back to school and spend time with his girlfriend Jo (Gretchen Mol).

At this point, unexpectedly, Mike’s life takes a twist as he meets his childhood friend Lester Murphy (Edward Norton). Lester, also known as “Worm”, just got out of prison and begins to influence Mike.

Want to know what he did? We’d like for you to see for yourself.

Box office Budget: $12,000,000
Opening Weekend USA: $8,459,126 (13 September 1998)
Gross USA: $22,912,409
Cumulative Worldwide Gross: $22,912,409
Maverick (1994)
Maverick was directed by Richard Donner, the same person who directed Conspiracy Theories. Written by Roy Huggins and William Goldman, the movie Maverick stars Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster, and James Garner. Maverick is eponymous as it tells the story of Bret Maverick who prefers to play Poker than to challenge people in duels.

The movie is set in the Wild West and shows Bret trying to raise money to enter a Winner Take All poker tournament. Was he successful? Find out!

Box Office Budget: $75,000,000
Opening Weekend USA: $17,248,545 (22 May 1994)
Gross USA: $101,631,272
Cumulative Worldwide Gross: $183,031,272
Ocean’s Eleven (2001)
Featuring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Julia Roberts, Ocean’s Eight was directed by Steven Soderbergh and was written by George Clayton. This Casino movie tells the story of three well-planned robberies carried out by Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and his team. These robberies happened all in a bit to get revenge on Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) who happened to be Danny’s ex-girlfriend’s new lover.

You want to see this play out.

Box Office Budget: $85,000,000
Opening Weekend USA: $38,107,822 (9 December 2001)
Gross USA: $183,417,150
Cumulative Worldwide Gross: $450,717,150
Uncut Gems (2019)
Uncut Gems is a drama starring Adam Sandler who plays the role of Howard Ratner, a New Yorker who deals in gems. This story written by Ronald Bronstein pictures Howard as a gambling addict whose addiction pushes him to intensify his risks when betting. He goes on to lend a precious gemstone to a high-profile and at this point, a whole new happening unfolds. We want you to find out yourself!
Box Office Budget: $19,000,000
Opening Weekend USA: $537,242 (15 December 2019)
Gross USA: $50,023,780
Cumulative Worldwide Gross: $50,023,780
21 (2008)
Ever heard about the saying “leaving the best for the last”? That’s what we did here. Real Time Gaming presents to you, the movie 21.

21 is a movie that revolves around Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess) who had to gamble under the tutelage of Professor Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey) to pay his tuition at Harvard School of Medicine. Though this was his plan at first, he comes to realize that his smartness could be an added advantage for him. This movie portrays Las Vegas, the home of gambling in all its majesty. We advise you to go and check it out as soon as possible! This movie starring Kate Bosworth, Kevin Spacey, and Jim Sturgess was written by Peter Steinfield and directed by Robert Luketic.

Box Office Budget: $35,000,000
Opening Weekend USA: $24,105,943 (30 March 2008)
Gross USA: $81,159,365
Cumulative Worldwide Gross: $159,808,370

AUTHOREddy Cheung

I remember the first time I saw Kai Tak, Hong Kong's gambling city, I thought I was in a fairy tale. All the lights blinking, the music and the monumental buildings, what 9-year-old wouldn’t think they’ve come to a magical place? It was my father who brought me, dragging me along and when inside I was hit by the smell of frying duck. As soon as I hit 21 I returned to Kai Tak, A bit nervous to see if my mind had embellished the memory, but it hadn’t. Kai Tak was still a magical place. I decided I wanted to spend as much time as I could at this place, so I did. For the next coming years I lived and breathed Kai Tak. Now I am married with kids, and they have become a part of my life too. That’s why I started exploring online casinos to create a better work-life balance and I couldn’t be happier!