A casino has a built-in advantage over its patrons that guarantees it will always make more money than they lose. That’s why they can afford to offer big bettors extravagant inducements like free spectacular entertainment and transportation, fine living quarters, reduced-fare hotel rooms, and cigarettes while gambling.
The movie tells the story of Sam “Ace” Rothstein (De Niro), a Jewish American gambler and handicapping expert who heads the Tangiers Casino in Sin City. The mob backs him but he runs the day-to-day operations of the place, which is more than just a gaming establishment. He also operates a brothel and manages streetwise chip hustler Ginger McKenna (Stone). The movie also centers on mob strong-arm Nicky Santoro (Pesci), who heads to Vegas with a view of taking over the town.
While it may not rank with the filmmaker’s best works such as Taxi Driver or Raging Bull, Casino is nevertheless a masterful and absorbing thriller that delivers its story in an engrossing fashion. As with all of his films, Scorsese is a master of timing, camera movements, and angles and uses them to paint a picture that’s a lot more than just a collection of scenes.
While many gangster movies are guilty of not having clear cut narratives, Casino is one of the few that provides the viewer with a clear understanding of what’s happening to each character as the film unfolds. This gives the story more weight and tragedy when these characters meet their demise, because it’s not a matter of chance or just plain luck.