The House Always Wins: The Gambling Drama as an Allegory for Filmmaking – Film School Rejects

You said that you felt alive for the first time while playing the card table. What do you want me to understand? Joe, inRounders

There are literally hundreds of films about gambling. I think its safe to say that the gambling film is its own genre. I mean, the gambling film even has a monopoly over the city of Las Vegas. And its a genre that might never die out. In fact, Aaron Sorkins directorial debut is an adaptation of a poker memoir.But what makes gambling so cinematic and why will Hollywood never stop making them? For sure, the Hollywood gambling films glamorous aesthetics align with its mission to entertain. Casinos, or at least the ones in James Bond films, overwhelm you with a decked-out decor and beautiful women.

Gambling films are so popular that theyve actually had a direct impact on peoples views of addiction and gambling. And that includes the medical community. In fact,in the movieThe Gambler,the protagonist Axel exhibits the symptoms of a pathological gambler, but pathological gambling was only included in the DSM-III (the American Psychiatric manual) 6 years later.

But first and foremost, lets explore the genre. The gambling drama covers two categories: the heist and the addiction. The heist usually lends itself to sleek ensemble comedy/dramas, like the Oceans Trilogy, in which youre always rooting for the thieves to win. And the addiction drama is usually a character study that sees a man (yes, always a man) risk everything to satisfy their addiction. Films likeFever Pitchfrom 1985 andJoe Swanbergs Netflix OriginalWin I t All are great examples of that.

To look a little closer at the genre,within those categories there are 3 different modes:

Of those 3 types of gambling, the most commonly used on in cinema is by far poker. Most of it has to do with the level of skill required to succeed in poker. Watching someone try their chance at a slot-machine for 90 minutes doesnt translate as well as a suave gentleman playing poker-face cool while engaging in sly repartees with his competition. On top of that, the necessity for self-control in poker heightens both the tension and the characters subjectivity. Usually, the audience can see the players hand, or its a complete surprise. Indeed, poker exhibits a kind of competitive toughness. Whoever loses control and shows face loses. Indeed, gambling films often rely on these gender tropes to sell their glamor or gristle.

Either way, poker and blackjack are the more cinematic of the casino games.

Another reason why the gambling drama is so popular is that it functions as an allegory for filmmaking. The financial pressures of making a film are dramatized in the gambling genre. Doubtless financing a film is usually less life-threatening than losing a few million in blackjack, for instance. But negotiations with studio heads and financiers and producers forces you to develop thick skin. I mean, Harvey Weinstein is called The Punisher for a reason.So yes, financing a film is a gamble. For the studio head and the director. The pressure is both felt and exerted on both sides. But its not a matter if putting your chips in the slot and hoping that something will come of it. So self-revealing dramas about addiction and poor self-control dramatize the art of making a film. As Richard Brody points out in his review ofWin It All,the allegory amplified the necessary skill inyielding control and confronting the compulsions that both motivate and override the rational calculations of moviemaking.

In the heist film, the premise of con-ing the house is a utopian capitalist story, in which the underdogs use teamwork to defeat the bullies of global capitalism. Indeed, though dealing in crime, the heist film presents a very subversive message. TakeOceans 11 as an example. In the film, Danny Ocean is on a mission to defeat the beast of capitalism, Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia). He assembles a group of 11 talented con artists, whose skills are being squandered elsewhere and promises them eight figures, divided equally. And the values on display in this film are of friendship and loyalty, not greed. And after paying Benedict back inOceans Twelve, they donate his portion to charity because he attempts to steal from the gang. A director like Soderbergh, whom Ive written about before, is both in and out of the Hollywood system. Thus, the ethical heist in Oceans 11almost resembles the financing for his latest feature. How to take the money away from the artless Hollywood bullies and redistribute it among the artists. The House always wins. Until it doesnt.

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The House Always Wins: The Gambling Drama as an Allegory for Filmmaking - Film School Rejects