An enigmatic picture, Casino is a movie of rare depth and power. It reveals how greed, treachery, and violence are the defining characteristics of Vegas culture, as well as a way of life for many characters. It also features perhaps the best performance of Sharon Stone’s career.
It is a movie that, unlike the glamorous sexy fun of Paul Verhoeven’s Showgirls or the broad comedy of Pauly Shore’s Showtime, makes us feel like we’re eavesdropping in a secret world. From the opening scene of a car bomb and the figure of Sam “Ace” Rothstein floating in the air, we are engulfed in a film that, despite being almost three hours long, never lags or runs out of steam. With a taut narration and masterful editing, Martin Scorsese has made a lean, mean thriller that is as compelling as any of his movies.
Casino examines how the mob influenced and corrupted Las Vegas casinos in the 1990s. It also describes how casinos have embraced technology to improve security and ensure the fairness of games. For example, betting chips with built-in microcircuitry allow casinos to monitor how much is wagered minute by minute and warn them of any deviation; roulette wheels are electronically monitored so that a rigged wheel can be discovered quickly.
But Casino is not simply about the Mafia’s grip on Vegas; it’s about how that culture corrupted and destroyed the lives of everyone involved. As he did with Boogie Nights a few years later, Scorsese conveys both nostalgia and ambivalence for this lost era.
