source: The Gambler

Moviecut—The Gambler

The Gambler

English professor Axel Freed (James Caan) has a gambling problem. He's in deep. He needs the high that comes with risk of losing. He tells his girlfriend Billie (Lauren Hutton) that he owes $44k. He keeps asking everybody for $10k. With threats hanging over his head, his mother gives him the money. Instead of paying off his debt, he continues to gamble recklessly. He gets into worst with his bookmaker Hips (Paul Sorvino). This is a great dive into the mind of a degenerate gambler. I love his idea of the gambling high. It's not the idea of winning that gets him high. It's the risk of losing that gives him the juice. I would have liked for the basketball game to end differently but I do get what the movie is trying to say. He is too inside his own head. His self-destruction overtakes him. It's a fair ending for a difficult character.

This is a film that must be seen to be believed. Caan is extraordinary; the emotional truth of this film penetrates each line, each scene...The most searing and intense and exact ending in modern film. The straight-forward telling of a professor with a gambling problem does not prepare one for the scale and price of betrayal and redemption of human emtions that are portrayed. A stunning film.

Much criticism and disappointment has been expressed over the new remake of this movie that was released over Christmas. Having seen this version over the remake already in theaters, I understand where the disappointment is coming from. Why on earth would you even dare to remake a film as incredible as this? This original version with James Caan went largely ignored when released, but it stands to me as one of the greatest films to ever come out of the 70's. It has that gritty, NYC, 70's feel that made films like Mean Streets and Serpico so great. The performances are masterful. You can't go wrong with James Caan, or Paul Sorvino either. I HIGHLY recommend, you see this one first before you even think about seeing, what is probably, a useless remake of this classic.

I found this film very, very good and being a gambler myself could relate to the central character. James Caan is brilliant as always. The film keeps simmering on until a quite dramatic ending where Axel goes to seek thrills that even gambling cannot provide him with. A fine, realist film for all, but gamblers, quite bad gamblers at that, will find to be particularly interesting.

I saw this movie back in 1974/75 when it was released. I was already a Caan man. My comments are just random tidbits. Burt Young would go on to join Caan in 1975's The Killer Elite". Monkey (London Lee) was a stand-up comic who appeared numerous times on the Ed Sullivan show in the 60's. Lauren Hutton would trade Caan for Burt Reynolds in Gator. Caan earlier had beat out Burt for the role of Sonny Corleone. The line I remember most from this film is when Axel's mother is trying to get a bank loan to fund his gambling debt. There are some bureaucratic snafus and the bank officer isn't sure he has the proof to approve the loan to mom. Caan says "I came out of her womb and I know she's my mom. Now give her the god... money!".

a shocker in the 70s james toback's take on Dostoevskyan's fate, caan actually seems to act instead of react and gives a far more compelling performance than say, Thief 7 yrs. later. The Gambler is James toback's career making debut and has some of the most intense scenes toback would ever film despite numerous strong films later on. the ending is monumental. watch it build and be amazed. 9 of 10.

A gritty, realistic film about addiction, it has a bit of haunting atmosphere to it, and although awfully dreary and a touch too harrowing for its own good, the film still packs a punch. Caan has a very interesting character, one who understands his own addiction yet still deceives himself, and he gives off a very solid performance, even though his character does come off rather cold and a bit hard to relate to. What the film shows us and what happens is quite predictable, but that does not prevent it from still having potency, and the ending certainly is not predictable, and is actually rather fascinating. The film's music score fits the project perfectly, and the driving sequences depict the character's feelings very well. Certainly this worth checking out, even if it is no cinema masterpiece.