On Friday 23rd October Mississippi Grind, starring Ben Mendelsohn, Ryan Reynolds and Sienna Miller will roll in to cinemas. This bittersweet movie follows Gerry (Mendelsohn) a talented but struggling poker player about to be swallowed up by his unshakable gambling habit, when his luck begins to change upon meeting the young, charismatic Curtis (Reynolds). Gerry convinces his new lucky charm to hit the road with him, and as they head off through the South towards a legendary high stakes poker game in New Orleans, an undeniable bond forms between the pair.
In anticipation, we’re taking a look back at five of our favourite films about gambling.
5. Casino (1995)
Greed, deception, money, power, and murder occur between two mobster best friends and a trophy wife over a gambling empire.
Starring Robert De Niro, Sharon Stone, Joe Pesci, James Woods.
4. Ocean’s Eleven (2011)
Definitely one of the most memorable films that has such a star studded cast. Often films like these tend to rely on the sheer volume of big names as the draw instead of the story, but Ocean’s 11 is definitely a fan favourite. In it, Danny Ocean and his eleven accomplices plan to rob three Las Vegas casinos simultaneously.
Starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon
3. 21 (2008)
21 is the fact-based story about six MIT students who were trained to become experts in card counting and subsequently took Vegas casinos for millions in winnings.
Starring Jim Sturgess, Kate Bosworth, Kevin Spacey, Aaron Yoo
2. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)
A botched card game in London triggers four friends, thugs, weed-growers, hard gangsters, loan sharks and debt collectors to collide with each other in a series of unexpected events, all for the sake of weed, cash, and two antique shotguns.
Starring Jason Flemyng, Dexter Fletcher, Nick Moran, Jason Statham
1. Casino Royale (2006)
Armed with a licence to kill, James Bond sets out on his first mission as 007 in which he must bankrupt a terrorist financier by beating him in a game of high-stakes poker. But if he loses, the British government will have directly financed terrorism.
Starring Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Judi Dench, Jeffrey Wright
Mississippi Grind is a bittersweet road movie about friendship and fate, bourbon and blues and, most of all, the refusal to give up – even when the odds are stacked against you. Check it out when it opens in cinemas October 23rd.