Blackjack is a gambling card game that requires two or more players and a dealer. Its played in a clockwise direction and its main objective is to beat the dealer. Its based on luck and probability but it requires thinking, attention and following of rules. Blackjack is widely known as Twenty-one and it’s a risk reward game. It has inspired other gambling games such as pontoon. Blackjack has been incorporated in many movies to build characters and plot dramatically. Some of the best Blackjack movies of all time based on the role of blackjack in the movies and success of the movie include; With the Irishman on Netflix it reminded us of Casino which in turn reminded us of all the cool Blackjack movies.
21
21 is a heist movie based on real life story of the MIT Blackjack team that took debut in 2008.The movie is based on a book, Bringing down the house, by Ben Mezrich. Professor Micky Rosa invites Ben Campbell to join his blackjack team following his performance in a mathematics test. He trains them to count cards using their mathematical skills and let them play in a casino at Las Vegas where they continuously win a lot of money but through illegitimate ways. They win a lot of profits and become greedy and hence their unity is weakened. Eventually, they are caught by the casino security and the professor is arrested.
The Cooler
The cooler hit the theatre in 2003 and is a romantic drama film. A cooler is a casino employee that they use to reduce their risk. Bernie is the cooler who is indebted to the Shangri-La Casino owner, Shelly Kaplow. Bernie is an unlucky guy and Shelly uses this to the casino’s advantage and Bernie pays off his debt through this. Unfortunately, Bernie wants out of this hence he saves money to move out of Vegas. Shelly uses Natalie to seduce Bernie to stay but they fall in love and this increase Bernie’s luck and people around him. Shelly resists updates to his casino as they will pose a threat to his power. Bernie’s operations in the casino is interfered with the arrival of his wife and adult son.
Croupier
This is a 1998 film that is about a writer who becomes a croupier because his writing does not pay off. Jack breaks casino rules by sleeping with Bella his fellow dealer and he befriends Jani a player. Jani convinces Jack to help her in robbing the casino by raising a false alarm when a gambler cheats at his table and the gambler would beat Jack as distraction while the others still the money. However, they don’t manage to do this. Jack continued his life as a croupier and managed to publish his book.
Casino
It is a 1995 film based on the novel Casino; Love and Honor in Las Vegas. It has many blackjack scenes in it. In one of the scenes, Pesci is the most outstanding guy in the movie. He catches a group of gamblers trying to cheat in Tangiers Casino. The gamblers were using a technique whereby one of them stands behind the dealer takes a peep and unveils the details to his/her crones in the table. The gambler is given an option to forfeit the winnings or get his fingers crushed and he chooses to lose the profits.
Rain Man
It is an American drama film that is one of the most successful Blackjack movies. It ventured in 1998 and involves Raymond who has the ability of counting numerous things at once. Charlie learns about his brother Raymond after the death of their father and introduces him to casino in Las Vegas. Raymond has the ability to memorise, count the cards and make faster calculations enabling then to win in their bets. In the end, they are discovered and banned from the casino game. This movie helped to show how blackjack can evoke drama because we are not shown how he does the calculations.
The Gambler
Its an American drama film that hit the theatre in 2014.Jim Benneti a literature professor is a gambling addict but it destroys him because he loses and thus keeps on borrowing. He owes Lee and Neville Baraka who are threatening him. Jim identifies two athletes in his class, Amy and Lamar, who have some qualities. Jim borrows money from his mother to pay the debts but he gambles it all. Baraka kidnaps Amy and threatens to kill her if he does get the money back. Jim successfully gets a loan from Frank and sends Lamar to bet who successfully wins. He uses the winning to pay Baraka. Jim manages to win in a neutral gambling den and settles his debts but goes home broke free of debts.
Stacy’s Knight
Stacy’s Knight also known as Double Down is an American film of 1983.Will (Kevin Costner) trains Stacy how to play Blackjack and enabled her to gain skills in card counting. Will becomes successful winning a lot of money in Reno. A cheating dealer is assigned by a corrupt casino management and finally Will is murdered. Stacy in revenge trains a team and imparts it with a lot of skills. The team wins a huge amount of money in casino to avenge for the death of Will.
Vegas Vacation
An American drama film that featured in 1997.Clark Griswold decided to rake his family on a vacation in Las Vegas. Clark gets interested in gambling whereby he loses to Marty during his first encounter. Rusty, Clark’s son gambles and wins four cars. Eddie, Clarke’s cousin, and Clarke goes to a local casino to pick their money. Unfortunately, Clarke’s gambles and loses all the money. Clarke becomes discouraged and loses interest in gambling and all he wants is his family. Finally, Clarke gets back to his family and decide to gamble their last money. Luckily they win and he gives Eddie his money back. They drive back home in the four cars that Rusty won.
Holy Roller
It’s a Christian based movie that interplay Christianity and gambling. It is an American movie of 2011. Its a Blackjack team entirely made up of Christians. They succeed in winning a lot money in gambling. Its most interesting how they display the role of faith in gambling sector. They have managed to balance Christianity and gambling sector. Its the most well-funded Blackjack team.
Conclusion
This was our selection of the best Blackjack movies ever made. While all the protagonists in these films have their own reasons and motives for gambling, they all have one thing in common. They are all knowing the strategy of Blackjack, which is extremely important for success. The site of black-jack.com holds alot of valuable information and strategy about the game of Blackjack. When you are planning to learn Blackjack the site is the perfect place to start. But even if you are an already experienced player, you might find some valuable new input to optimise your play style.