Rounders is a poker cult classic that talks about the World Series of Poker and players like Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan years before they would all become incredibly popular due to the poker boom.

Angelina Jolie was the producer’s desperate first choice to play the female lead, but she responded that she would rather play the role of a female Bond instead of just “eye candy”.įinal Verdict: Great film, but stereotypical Hollywood monster poker hands prevent the poker scenes from being taken seriously. His Casino Royale would have featured previous Bond actor Pierce Brosnan, been filmed in black and white, and set in the 1950s. Plus, the villain shows to have a physical tell so obvious that he has to cover it up with his hand, vastly over-dramatizing the role that physical tells play in a poker game.ĭid You Know: Famed director Quentin Tarantino expressed interest in directing Casino Royale and claimed that he was working behind the scenes with the family of Ian Fleming (the creator of James Bond) to make a very different movie than what finally came out. The Bad: Unfortunately, most of this is undone when in the two important card showdowns both Bond and Le Chiffre always have monster hands that no one would’ve been able to prevent going all-in with, thus eliminating bluffing and any typical poker strategy from the equation. Action shown at the table is slickly shot and Craig produces a fine effort of showing Bond as a believably strong card player that shows little emotion. The Good: Bond does a good job explaining to sexy MI6 accountant Vesper Lynd the importance in poker of recognizing tells and to play the person, not the hand.

A sizable portion of the film takes place at a high-stakes poker game at the Casino Royale, where Bond and main villain Le Chiffre match wits and cards with tens of millions of dollars on the line. Casino Royale was able to put a fresh take on the Bond genre, focusing less on gadgets and over-the-top villains and more on gritty action and espionage. The first appearance of Daniel Craig as the titular British spy is also considered to be his best portrayal of Bond, a run that is now four movies deep.

Movies about poker Rounders