No one stays at the top forever

Rating: 7/10 (5 December 2010)

As a modern tragedy, 'Casino' is downright intoxicating. Every Martin Scorsese film is a wonderful gift, even the ever-so-slightly disappointing 'Shutter Island'.
'Casino' charts the rise and fall of Sam 'Ace' Rothstein (Robert De Niro) who is assigned the task of running a Las Vegas casino. Things go decidedly pear-shaped when his friend Nicky Santoro (Joe Pesci) decides to join him in the gambling capital of the world. A real firebrand with a very short fuse, Nicky is violent and erratic and attracts too much negative attention. Soon things are spiralling dangerously out of control.
Sam courts and marries a beautiful hustler named Ginger McKenna (Sharon Stone, in the performance of her career). But her surreptitious ongoing relationship with sleazy ex-boyfriend Lester Diamond (a wonderfully oleaginous performance by charismatic character actor James Woods) pushes Sam to the outer limits of his endurance.
Like 'Goodfellas', 'Casino' is based on the book by Nicholas Pileggi. And while 'Casino' does not reach the dizzying heights that 'Goodfellas' did, it is still well worth your time. Sharon Stone steals every scene she is in; casting her was a big risk - she was perceived as more of a sex symbol than a serious actress - and it paid huge dividends. She delivers a bravura performance and is a genuine pleasure to watch. As Nicky, Joe Pesci simmers with that deadly rage which made his character of Tommy DeVito in 'Goodfellas' so frightening and so electric to watch. And in a straight role, Don Rickles is very good as Billy Sherbert.
Clocking in at just under three hours in length, 'Casino' never feels overlong. And, once again, Scorsese fills the film with wonderful songs by artists such as Fleetwood Mac ('Go Your Own Way'), The Moody Blues ('Nights in White Satin'), and - of course - The Rolling Stones ('Long Long While' and 'Can't You Hear Me Knocking' (which opened the film 'Blow'). Lavish, violent, and almost operatic in its dramatic scope, 'Casino' is highly recommended.