5 Of The Best: Casino scenes in movies from the past 30 years

The casino is one of those places where we can all go to have some fun, and of course, over the past three decades, many movies have been filmed and set in the best of the, Whether it be a romantic drama, comedy, action film, or character-driven thriller, the casino is the place where filmmakers have often looked to set up their movies to give that extra little bit of excitement. In this article, we look back at the last thirty years, and five awesome movies to have at least one, jaw-dropping casino moment.

Indecent Proposal

We kick things off with a romantic drama starring Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson, and screen icon, Robert Redford. Indecent Proposal is a movie that asks its audience what they would do – accept $1million for your partner to spend an evening with another man/ woman. That offer is put to Moore’s Diana, who is asked to spend the night with Redford’s dashing billionaire, John Gage. However, Diana is married to David (Harrelson), and their marriage is put to the test after the posing of the indecent proposal of the title. The movie is set and partially filmed in Las Vegas, so there are many casino scenes – often set around the craps table – shot in the Mirage Hotel and Casino on the famous strip, and also the Las Vegas Hilton.

Jason Bourne

While this one doesn’t feature a specific scene in a casino, the latest Jason Bourne movie features quite the action sequence set and filmed on Las Vegas Boulevard. The scene in question sees Bourne (Matt Damon) in a high-speed chase, along with Vincent Cassel’s relentless bad guy, known only as ‘Asset’. Rather than taking a try at Bet in Ireland Casino™ Bourne’s luck has run out as he bypasses most of the hotels on the strip, desperately trying to get hold of the villain of the piece. 170 cars were reportedly destroyed in the high-octane scene which culminates in a SWAT vehicle slamming into the lobby of the now-demolished Riviera casino. Doesn’t get much bigger than this. For something very similar, though, do check out Con Air from over two decades earlier where Nicolas Cage speeds after John Malkovich’s character in the film’s climactic moments.

Casino Royale

We switch to Europe for our next scene, from 2006’s Casino Royale, Daniel Craig’s debut outing as 007. Midway through a game of Texas Hold ‘Em, Bond is seen apparently poised by the girlfriend of the villainous Le Chiffre (Mads MIkkelsen), and must dash outside to his trusty Aston Martin to get to a stored revival kit which will save his life. In true Bond style, 007 gets to the vehicle, sorts himself out and then returns to the poker table to win the game – beating the dastardly bad guy. Take that, Le Chiffre!

Ocean’s Eleven

We could have included any of the ‘Oceans’ movies for this list, but let’s focus on the debut George Clooney outing for our absolute fave. Our top moment comes when Clooney’s Danny Ocean and Brad Pitt’s Rusty Ryan teach a table full of teen stars (playing themselves) how to play poker. It is a fairly low-key scene, compared to the rest of the glorious set-pieces in the 2001 remake of the Rat Pack classic, but one that constantly stands out on repeat viewings.

Casino

Let’s finish off our list with arguably the best film to be set and filmed in Las Vegas of them all, Martin Scorsese’s classic 1995 movie, Casino. We place this one up there with Goodfellas as the second in a double punch of crime masterpieces set in the glory days of sin city. Our favourite scene is a simple one, set within the four walls of the Tangiers at the heart of the story. It is the first time we meet Sharon Stone’s Ginger where she, in the middle of a sea of male characters, is seen in the middle of the floor having fun at the table, throwing her chips in the air as she wins big. It’s a scene that is perfectly constructed and wonderfully shot. The film remains a must for any cinephile and this ranks as one of Scorsese’s finest.