The movie ‘Casino’ was directed by Martin Scorcese. It is the greatest and the most popular casino film about Las Vegas and its casinos. The movie came out in 1995. It was a story of two friends who decide to create their very own casino empire. This casino film is based on a true story, and that’s what makes it exciting and thrilling. In the film, Robert Deniro plays the character of Frank “Lefty” Rosenthal (named Sam Rothstein in the movie), and the character of his friend and mobster Tony Spilotro is played by Joe Pesci. But there are more interesting and amazing facts about the movie. Find out here.
- Robert DeNiro met Frank Rosenthal in-person, to prepare for his character.
- The casino in the movie was called Tangiers, and it really didn’t exist. The film was shot in a real casino named Riviera.
- Frank Rosenthal used to run the Stardust. He was a former executive at that casino. This fact was documented in history books. So, Martin Scorsese highlights the fact via the soundtrack. The track “Stardust” can be heard three times in the film.
- Sam Rothstein’s cigarettes always appear to burn at the same length throughout the movie. This is because Robert De Niro’s character was a chain smoker; he always had to hold the cigarettes the same distance from the lit end in order to deal with the continuity issues in the film.
- Frank Rosenthal hated the scene of the casino where his character Sam was shown juggling. Because he claimed that he actually never juggled, and the scene made him look like an idiot.
- The actress Claudia Haro who played the character of Trudy, was Joe Pesci’s wife in real life.
- The gold and brown gown worn by Sharon Stone when she makes an appearance in the casino games actually weighed 45 pounds.
- There were a total of 7,000 extras in the movie. Out of these, 120 had lines to speak.
- Sam Rothstein’s attorney, Oscar Goodman, is also a lawyer in real life who has defended many mobsters in Las Vegas.
- The costume budget of the movie Casino was about $1 million. Rober DeNiro was found to be wearing 70 different costumes throughout the movie. Sharon Stone was wearing 40 different costumes.
- Most dialogues between Robert DeNiro and Joe Pesci were not according to the script but improvised right during the shoot.
Bonus facts about the movie ‘Casino’
- Joe Pesci broke the same rib again that broke during his shooting of ‘Raging Bull’ 15 years earlier.
- James Wood so badly wanted to be a part of the film that was being made by Scorcese that as soon as he heard he was being considered, he went to meet Scorcese instantly and told him that he was ready to work anytime, anyplace and at any salary.
- Martin Scorcese turned down Sharon Stone twice without seeing her audition. When she was called a third time, she decided to skip it for dinner with her friend, and Scorcese had to personally meet her there to convince her to audition one more time.
- It was so rare for the crew to find people who would share secrets about how to cheat the casinos that they considered it was the most difficult part of making the movie.
For lovers of casino films, Scorcese’s Casino is not the only great movie about the Las Vegas gambling scene. You can also watch the following amazing movies below:
- ‘Ocean’s Eleven’: It is another very popular movie about casinos starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon. It features a plot to steal money from 3 casinos in Las Vegas.
- ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’: Directed by Terry Gilliam, this is another very popular choice that has reached the status of a cult-movie now.
- ‘Casino Royale’ (2006): Starring Daniel Craig as James Bond, this movie features a new style of casinos, i.e., mobile casinos. An amazing fact about the movie is that Daniel Craig lost two of his teeth while filming the fight scene in Prague.
Casinos have always been a favorite subject for moviemakers from around the world and it is quite common to have several casino-related movies releasing every year. They, in fact, reveal some interesting facts about casinos which you might otherwise don’t know.
