The Gambler

In 1974, Director Karel Reisz cast James Caan, Paul Sorvino, Lauren Hutton, Burt Young and James Woods in what may be the best film of its genre. Off the top of my head, there are, to be considered: The Cincinnati Kid The Hustler Casino Rounders 21 "The Gambler" is more closely related to "The Cincinnati Kid" and "The Hustler" in that the perspective is the demise of a single gambler and that they are the senior citizens of the genre. They also share the same theme: the directors attempt make the audience feel the apocalyptic burn of a blow torch as it pierces their toxic psyches. Can you feel the pain? Compared to these three films, "Rounders", which is a worthy movie, is more formulaic in its portrayal of the inevitable pain. "Casino" is epic and makes a powerful and brutal recreation of semi-factual events. "21", which is also based on real events, is the most fun to watch, but it's not based on addiction, only cheating. What separates "The Gambler" from the others is the way ... Read more

One of the best movies about gambling and gambling addiction ever made. Cann is as intense as Sonny Corleone but he's not doubling down in his family's casino. When he loses, we fill it. When people mention movies made in the 1970s this should be at the top of the list. If you don't know what a 70s ending is then watch this film.

James Caan is Axel Freed, an English professor in New York City. He also has a serious gambling problem. As the movie opens, Axel has racked up $44,000 in gambling debts from a bookie/loan shark named Hips (Paul Sorvino). Fortunately, Axel's family is extremely wealthy, so he manages to convince his mother to give him the money. He assures her that this is the end of the gambling. However, as soon as he gets the money, he picks up his most recent girlfriend (Lauren Hutton) and heads to Las Vegas. "The Gambler" is a rather good examination of how gambling can affect someone's life, as well as the lives of people around them. Caan's character nicely exemplifies the psychology behind how many people develop gambling problems. He explains that he's afraid of winning, not of losing. In his class, he discusses a piece by William Carlos Williams which criticizes George Washington for being risk-averse - it's easy to draw the parallels to Axel. Caan does a nice job here, with som... Read more

THE GAMBLER (1974), is a passive, visual movie, with the one and only James Caan, who plays an English Literature professor, who comes to believe as reality the poetry, artistic thoughts and beliefs he teaches to his classroom of students. The theory is that 2+2 is not 4, it's more than that, and life shouldn't be spent counting the minutes, hours down, but rather pushing the envelope, taking risks and enjoying the ride, the thrills while it lasts. As such, Caan's character "in theory" realizes he's a compulsive gambler, hopelessly addicted to all kinds of bets on all kinds of activities, his life hanging by a thread, and jeopardizing not only the love, respect of his family and girlfriend, but their psychological and physical well-being through a wreckless behavior that sees him lose thousands of dollars. The difficulty for Caan, is accepting his "theoretical addition" as "reality" and as a "objective, externally verifiable and observable fact". Clearly, Caan is ... Read more

This is a very good film. After watching it you have to pause and think about what you have seen, and let the impact sink in. Well acted, well casted, well scripted, well shot, pacy and with a good story that is hard to predict. It highlights the degeneracy that can affect those born into money, the grandchildren of the penniless hardworking immigrants who passed through Ellis Island and made good in the Golden Land.

james caan has play the character very well and is in the centre of the movie.The ups and downs are the gamblers live,but the lesson is dont play with the mafia and dont play with what you love at most.