Review of Casino (1995) by Barbara79 — 15 Oct 2019

Martin Scorsese's Casino is a great film, expected from a director of Scorsese's stature. Casino opens with short sequence in 1983 before moving on to the meat of the story, which is related through flashbacks.

Director Martin Scorsese makes heavy use of voiceovers, employing disembodied monologues by both lead actors -- Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci -- to fill in gaps. The sheer volume of words sporadically detracts from character development, but it is integrated successfully enough not to seem overly intrusive.

In every way -- from the fantastic sets, rich dialogue, and unapologetic violence to the well-portrayed characters and themes of loyalty and betrayal -- Casino is pure Scorsese. Although not the director's top work, this is nevertheless compelling film making.

Casino sparkles like its fake diamond of a host city. The cinematography, which uses surprisingly few tricks other than freeze-framing to emphasize key moments, is crisp and clean.(Top tier film from a top tier filmmaker).