It goes without saying that a really good gambling movie has a substantial draw to it – in fact, there is often more than one.
This is because the best ones usually combine a myriad of different ‘sub-themes’ and tie them into the main theme; gambling.
It could be argued that this is certainly the case for some of the best ones that have been released over the decades and Hollywood certainly cannot seem to help throwing one into the mix every now and again.
What might come as a surprise for quite a few, are the numbers at the box office, with many grossing into the hundreds of millions in addition to a substantial figure for that particular movie’s opening weekend.
The best Gambling Movies now ranked
You can now find though which are the top 21 gambling movies that have ever been released. In a recent study by the team at New Casino Sites, which pulled together data from a number of sources and then calculated an overall percentage for each one, the top 21 gambling movies have been revealed.
This has resulted in Casino Royale clinching the top spot with 87 percent, with this James Bond thriller packing a number of the typical 007 movie traits into 145 minutes of adrenaline fuelled action, with gambling being a prime theme.
A figure which is a stark contrast from the movie which finished last in the study; 21 with an underwhelming 51.50 percent, based on true events, chronicling the story of Stanford University mathematics students and professors who set out to dupe several casinos with their card counting skills.
Despite this being based on a true story though, it seemingly failed to make the grade when compared to other gambling movies. Especially Molly’s Game, which was also based on a true story – that of an Olympic skier who ran illicit gambling events for years before being arrested by the FBI. This ranked in 11th place with a respectable 78.50 percent – a remarkable 27 percent difference from last place.
Arguably the most surprising result of the study was that Mr Lucky, released in 1943 narrowly missed out on top spot, coming in at second with 86 percent. While this certainly had a gambling theme, there were definitely undercurrents of romance and comedy and with Cary Grant as lead, this could definitely be one major contributing factor as to why it has had so much pulling power for so long.
Old and new represented
While Mr Lucky was the oldest movie in the study, this gave credence to the fact that there was a substantial range in terms of release dates of those in the survey, with movies from a number of decades included.
For example, you will find God of Gamblers from 1989, California Split that was released in 1974, The Cincinnati Kid which came out in 1965, as well as a number of nineties classics including Casino, Croupier and Rounders. From the new millennium onwards you will find The Hangover, The Cooler, Mississippi Grind and of course Casino Royale, plus others.
The next time you are stuck for something to watch – remember, there is more to gambling movies than meets the eye.
