Casino (Movie Review)

A casino is a place where people gamble. They often have table games and slot machines. They also serve alcohol. They usually have a gambling age of 21 or older. They are regulated by the government. People who work in a casino are called employees.

In the early sequence with deliberate echoes of Goodfellas’ Copacabana interlude—a prowling Steadicam gliding through closed doors into an illicit inner circle—Ace Rothstein (Robert De Niro) and his henchmen oversee the money counting room at Tangiers. Here, “good” players are rewarded with free hotel rooms, dinners, tickets to shows, and even limo service and airline tickets. This is what’s known as a comp, and it’s an essential part of the way casinos guarantee their own profitability.

This is where Casino sets itself apart from other mob movies, both in its style and subject matter. While films like Goodfellas and Mean Streets focus on characters’ professional lives, Casino takes the view from above, illustrating how these men and women are swept up into the machine and then spit out due to their lust, hubris, and greed.

The film is also notable for its use of music, which underscores and adds to the emotional power of some scenes. It’s a genre-defining masterpiece that’s rarely been equaled.