Casino Movie Ebert
This is possibly the most indulgent film ever made. Anything goes. Consistency and planning must have seemed the merest whimsy. One imagines the directors (there were five, all working independently) waking in the morning and wondering what they'd shoot today. How could they lose? They had bundles of money, because this film was blessed with the magic name of James Bond.
Casino Royale is a 1967 British-American spy parody film originally produced by Columbia Pictures featuring an ensemble cast.It is loosely based on Ian Fleming's first James Bond novel.The film stars David Niven as the 'original' Bond, Sir James Bond 007.Forced out of retirement to investigate the deaths and disappearances of international spies, he soon battles the mysterious Dr. Noah and SMERSH. Casino Royale (2006) is without doubt one of the best Ian Fleming's James Bond. This is the real film, the real Bond film unlike lackluster sh.y Die Another Day stupid movie! I have enjoyed this film so damn much! I love this film to death, from action sequence to actors and the plot story I love it. Directed by Martin Scorsese. With Robert De Niro, Sharon Stone, Joe Pesci, James Woods. A tale of greed, deception, money, power, and murder occur between two best friends: a mafia enforcer and a casino executive compete against each other over a gambling empire, and over a.
Perhaps that was the problem. When Charles Feldman bought the screen rights for 'Casino Royale' from Ian Fleming back in 1953, nobody had heard of James Bond, or Sean Connery for that matter. But by the time Feldman got around to making the movie, Connery was firmly fixed in the public imagination as the redoubtable 007. What to do?
Feldman apparently decided to throw all sanity overboard instead of one Bond, he determined to have five or six. The senior Bond is Sir James Bond (David Niven). He is called out of retirement to meet a terrible threat by SMERSH.
Unfortunately, the threat is never explained. Other Bonds are created on the spot. Peter Sellers is the baccarat-playing Bond. He meets Le Chiffre (Orson Welles) in a baccarat game. Why? The movie doesn't say.
The five directors were given instructions given only for their own segments, according to the publicity, and none knew what the other four were doing. This is painfully apparent.
There are some nice touches, of course. Woody Allen rarely fails to be funny, and the massive presence of Welles makes one wish Le Chiffre had been handled seriously.
But the good things are lost, too often, in the frantic scurrying back and forth before the cameras. The steady hand of Terence Young, who made the original Bond films credible despite their gimmicks, is notably lacking here.
I suppose a film this chaotic was inevitable. There has been a blight of these unorganized comedies, usually featuring Sellers, Allen, and-or Jonathan Winters, in which the idea is to prove how zany and clever everyone is when he throws away the script and goes nuts in front of the camera.
In comedy, however, understatement is almost always better than excess.
Sellers was the funniest comedian in the movies when he was making those lightly directed low-budget pictures like 'I'm All Right, Jack.' Now he is simply self-infatuated and wearisome. And so are the movies he graces.
One wishes Charlie Feldman had sat down one bright morning, early in the history of this film, and announced that everyone simply had top get organized.
| Casino Jack | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | George Hickenlooper |
| Produced by | Gary Howsam Bill Marks George Zakk |
| Written by | Norman Snider |
| Starring | Kevin Spacey Barry Pepper Rachelle Lefevre Kelly Preston Jon Lovitz Maury Chaykin |
| Music by | Jonathan Goldsmith |
| Cinematography | Adam Swica |
| Edited by | William Steinkamp |
Hannibal Pictures Rollercoaster Entertainment | |
| Distributed by | Art Takes Over Films (ATO) |
| |
| 108 minutes | |
| Country | Canada[1] |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $12.5 million |
| Box office | $1.1 million[2] |
Casino Jack (known in certain territories as Bagman) is a 2010 comedy-dramathriller film directed by George Hickenlooper and starring Kevin Spacey. The film focuses on the career of Washington, D.C. lobbyist and businessman Jack Abramoff, who was involved in a massive corruption scandal that led to his conviction as well as the conviction of two White House officials, Rep.Bob Ney, and nine other lobbyists and congressional staffers. Abramoff was convicted of fraud, conspiracy and tax evasion in 2006,[3] and of trading expensive gifts, meals and sports trips in exchange for political favors.[4][5] Abramoff served three and a half years of a six-year sentence in federal prison, and was then assigned to a halfway house. He was released on December 3, 2010.
Spacey was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his portrayal of Abramoff, eventually losing to Paul Giamatti for his role in Barney's Version.[6]
Plot[edit]
A hot shot Washington DC lobbyist and his protégé go down hard as their schemes to peddle influence lead to corruption and murder.
Casino Movie Review Ebert
Cast[edit]
- Kevin Spacey as Jack Abramoff
- Kelly Preston as Pam Abramoff
- Rachelle Lefevre as Emily J. Miller
- Barry Pepper as Michael Scanlon
- Jon Lovitz as Adam Kidan
- John David Whalen as Kevin A. Ring
- Yannick Bisson as Oscar Carillo
- Graham Greene as Bernie Sprague
- Eric Schweig as Chief Poncho
- Maury Chaykin as Big Tony
- Christian Campbell as Ralph Reed
- Spencer Garrett as Tom DeLay
- Joe Pingue as Anthony Ferrari
- David Fraser as Karl Rove
- Jeffrey R. Smith as Grover Norquist
- Daniel Kash as Gus Boulis
- Conrad Pla as Agent Hanley
- Hannah Endicott-Douglas as Sarah Abramoff
- Ruth Marshall as Susan Schmidt
- Reid Morgan as Brian Mann
- Duke Redbird as Senator Nighthorse
Production[edit]
Filming took place in June 2009 in various locations across Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, including McMaster University and downtown Hamilton. The film was scheduled for release in December 2010 and premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.[7]
This was Hickenlooper's final film. He died on October 29, 2010, seven weeks before its scheduled December 17, 2010, national opening.[8]
Reception[edit]
Casino Jack received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 39%, based on 97 reviews, with an average rating of 5.4/10. The website's critical consensus reads, 'Kevin Spacey turns in one of his stronger performances, but Casino Jack is a disappointingly uneven fictionalized account of a fascinating true story.'[9] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 51 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating 'mixed or average reviews'.[10]
Roger Ebert gave the film three out of four stars, stating that 'Casino Jack is so forthright, it is stunning.'[11]
References[edit]
- ^'Casino Jack -- Film Review by Michael Rechtshaffen'. thehollywoodreporter.com. October 14, 2010. Retrieved February 18, 2011.
- ^'Casino Jack (2010)'. Box Office Mojo. 2011-04-07. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
- ^Abramoff Pleads Guilty, Will Help in Corruption ProbeArchived December 29, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
- ^'US lobbyist jailed for corruption'. BBC News. 2008-09-04. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
- ^'Abramoff Gets Reduced Sentence of Four Years in Prison'. Washingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
- ^Kevin SpaceyArchived August 12, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^Evans, Ian (2010), 'Casino Jack premiere photos - 35th Toronto International Film Festival', DigitalHit.com, retrieved 2012-04-10
- ^'Entertainment News, Celebrity Interviews and Pop Culture - ABC News'. Abcnews.go.com. Retrieved 2012-12-16.
- ^'Casino Jack (2010)'. Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
- ^'Casino Jack Reviews'. Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
- ^Ebert, Roger. 'Casino Jack'. RogerEbert.com. Ebert Digital LLC.
Casino Movie Cast
External links[edit]
Casino Movie Review Roger Ebert
- Casino Jack at AllMovie
- Casino Jack at Box Office Mojo
- Casino Jack on IMDb
- Casino Jack at Metacritic
- Casino Jack at Rotten Tomatoes
- Casino Jack production website at Hannibal Pictures