Powerhouse Entertainment at Its Highest Level

Rating: Null/10 (22 May 2016)

Casino (1995)
**** (out of 4)
Martin Scorsese's epic look at Mafia crime in Las Vegas has Robert DeNiro playing 'Ace' Rothstein, a man placed in the sin city to run things but his love for a former prostitute (Sharon Stone) and the Mafia henchman (Joe Pesci) brought out to keep things running smoothly might have the entire operation fall apart.
Technically speaking this here is without question one of the greatest looking movies that you're ever going to see. How Scorsese told the story of the Mafia's involvement in Las Vegas makes for one of the most visually striking movies that you're ever going to see. I say that because the editing, the music selections and the cinematography really comes to life like very few films and it makes it possible for the director to tell this rather violent story unlike anything else he's ever done.
I will say that I don't think this is his greatest movie as I think there are several others that are better but that just speaks to how wonderful Scorsese was that he could make so many terrific movies. As I said, the visual style here is rather amazing and there's a lot of narration used, which had to be done because so much is covered here that without the narration you'd be looking at a six or seven hour movie. The narration is something that at one time bothered me but today it's just an added greatness because of how it basically reads you a story and keeps you up to date on everything that was going on.
The performances are another major plus as the director gets some of his strongest performers here. The laid back DeNiro that we get to see here is something the actor really nails. I loved the way DeNiro's rage is all the more powerful when it happens because he just slowly builds this anger towards the wife. Pesci is as powerful as ever. Some of complained that this is basically the same role he played in GOODFELLAS but who cares? Stone also delivers the strongest performance of her career as the deadbeat junkie who by the end of the film you will hate with a passion. We also get great support from Frank Vincent, Don Rickles, James Woods, Kevin Pollack and Alan King.
Clocking in just a couple minutes short of three hours, the film manages to pack quite a punch. As story-telling goes the director does a marvelous job at taking a look at Vegas from countless view points. He perfectly covers the main characters but we also get to see it from crooked politicians, the "guys back home" and of course even the FBI. CASINO has all sorts of great scenes and it's just amazing watching how Scorsese puts everything together and turns it into something magical.