In Praise of Rounders, the Greatest Poker Movie of All Time

No online casino game offers quite as much drama as poker.

It’s hard to say exactly why. There’s just something about the game!

Maybe it’s the constant possibility of going all-in in no-limit games. Maybe it’s the competitive thrill of going up against play against other players (rather than against the house). Or maybe it’s just the beauty of trying to keep up a great poker face.

Whatever the reason, though, there’s no question that poker has given the world some of the best movies (and best songs) of all time!

And yet, even amongst such distinguished company as Casino Royale (19, The Sting (1973), and Maverick (19, there’s a case to be made that Rounders (1998) is the best poker movie of all time.

What makes this movie so strong, and how has it continued to thrive nearly 25 years after it was first released?

Let’s take a closer look at what makes this classic so special, for gamblers and for the general public alike.

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The Challenge

Poker movies face an innate conflict of interest. In order to be thrilling movies, they naturally want to emphasize the most dramatic elements of the game. Those elements, however, are often not terribly true to the game as it’s really played!

In real life, pros have to sit for marathon bet sessions, lasting hours upon hours, folding rags over and over, trying to steal blinds, and generally engaging in unglamorous, boring play that is hardly the stuff of cinematic lore.

In order to make for fun viewing, films have to skip over all these (ittedly boring) parts of the game.

This sets up a two-pronged trap for filmmakers. Usually, they try so hard to make a good movie, they don’t bother to get the poker side of things even remotely right. Other times, they’re so obsessed with getting a realistic portrayal of the gaming elements, they forget to make a decent movie!

Consider the example of the most famous poker scene in recent movie history: the final hand of the tournament in Casino Royale. The fate of the world rests in the steady hands of James Bond, whose poker prowess is the only thing preventing disaster. Yet the outcome is decided not by any skill, but by getting truly, astronomically lucky: 007 is dealt a straight flush – one that has a a 0.027% of hitting – while he also just so happens to be up against a flush and two (two!) full houses.

Is it filled with Hollywood drama? Absolutely!

Does this resemble any real poker hand? Absolutely not.

Other movies, like High Roller: The Stu Unger Story, become so wrapped up in their source material that they become dull as can be.

Rounders avoids this trap altogether.

But how?

The Accessibility

Part of the film’s success stems from its widespread appeal. While poker aficionados love it, people who don’t know a big blind from a deer blind can enjoy it, too.

Partially, this is just great storytelling on the part of the filmmakers. The basics of the game are explained simply, and while there is plenty of poker terminology being thrown around, you don’t need to already speak the language to understand what’s going on.

The Cast

Rounders’ greatness goes beyond smart filmmaking, though. The excellent cast has a lot to do with its success.

While there have been plenty of great poker movies, many of them featuring one or two very famous actors, no single offering boasts an ensemble cast as strong as this one.

Yes, Matt Damon was already an irresistible leading man at the tender age of 27. And yes, Gretchen Mol plays his love interest with phenomenal charm and glamor. You instantly root for Damon’s character, and also completely understand why he would give up poker glory for the love of a good woman.

But it goes way beyond those two leads. Edward Norton, famed for his leading turns in American History X, Fight Club, The Grand Budapest Hotel, and many Wes Anderson movies, combines sleaziness and charm in an unforgettable fashion as Worm.

John Turturro, one of the most skilled and prolific character actors of all time, embodies the blue-collar, professional poker grinder Joey Knish. The film’s father figure is based on a real life player, Joey “Bagels” Rosenberg, who was once a fixture of the New York City underground poker scene.

And the great John Malkovich, lord of the screen, is unforgettable as the opponent to end all opponents, the indomitable Kenny KGB.

With a cast like that, this film is already in elite company.

A Darn Fine Film

At the end of the day, Rounders’ incredible success and staying poker comes down to one simple fact: it’s a great movie, that just happens to be about poker.

There are more card scenes than could be counted, featuring every kind of table drama and properly showcasing the hard-driving, sleepless, gritty and glamorous life of professional poker. But it’s also a simple, timeless story about human beings in all of their complexity.

Even if it’s inspired countless of newbies to take up the game, it’s also been celebrated by those who’ve never set foot on a gaming floor. That’s why Rounders remains king of poker movies.