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Croupier (film)
Encyclopedia
Croupier is a 1998 film starring Clive Owen
as a croupier
. Directed by Mike Hodges
, the film was released by Image Entertainment on DVD in the USA, and Alliance Atlantis in Canada. Though intended as a feature film, it was shown on television in North America. It was also initially released in cinemas and drew a steady audience at the box office, attracting a strong critical following in North America, and helping to launch Clive Owen's acting career there.
Croupier was disqualified from the Academy Awards
after it was shown on Dutch television.
The film has been classified as neo-noir
. It uses interior monologues in the style of many early noir detective films.
) is down on her luck; under pressure from her creditors she approaches Jack, asking him to be the inside man for a planned heist at the casino. Jack carefully considers the odds; it all looks so simple but even a professional like Jack cannot predict the cards which he will be dealt.
gave a 98% positive rating based on 53 reviews. Critic Roger Ebert
gave the film three stars, remarking that the point of the film was not the plot, but the atmosphere and characterzation. He also lauded the realistic depiction of the casino itself. Stephen Holden
in the New York Times called the movie, "a breezy meditation on life as a game of chance".
The film grossed $6,201,143 at the North America
n box office, and a further $ 873,925 internationally.
Clive Owen
Clive Owen is an English actor, who has worked on television, stage and film. He first gained recognition in the United Kingdom for portraying the lead in the ITV series Chancer from 1990 to 1991...
as a croupier
Croupier
A croupier or dealer is someone appointed at a gambling table to assist in the conduct of the game, especially in the distribution of bets and payouts. Croupiers are typically employed by casinos.-Origin of the word:...
. Directed by Mike Hodges
Mike Hodges
Mike Hodges is an English screenwriter, film director, playwright and novelist. His films as writer/director include Get Carter, Pulp, The Terminal Man and Black Rainbow; as director his films include Flash Gordon, Croupier and I'll Sleep When I'm Dead...
, the film was released by Image Entertainment on DVD in the USA, and Alliance Atlantis in Canada. Though intended as a feature film, it was shown on television in North America. It was also initially released in cinemas and drew a steady audience at the box office, attracting a strong critical following in North America, and helping to launch Clive Owen's acting career there.
Croupier was disqualified from the Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
after it was shown on Dutch television.
The film has been classified as neo-noir
Neo-noir
Neo-noir is a style often seen in modern motion pictures and other forms that prominently utilize elements of film noir, but with updated themes, content, style, visual elements or media that were absent in films noir of the 1940s and 1950s.-History:The term Film Noir was coined by...
. It uses interior monologues in the style of many early noir detective films.
Plot
Jack Manfred (Owen) is an aspiring writer going nowhere fast. To make ends meet and against his better judgment, he takes a job as a croupier. He finds himself drawn into the casino world and the job gradually takes over his life; his relationship with girlfriend Marion begins to deteriorate. One gambler in particular catches his attention: Jani, whom he starts to see outside working hours—a serious violation of casino rules. Jani (Alex KingstonAlex Kingston
Alexandra Elizabeth "Alex" Kingston is an English actress. She is most widely known for her roles as Dr. Elizabeth Corday on the NBC medical drama ER and as River Song in Doctor Who.-Early life and education:...
) is down on her luck; under pressure from her creditors she approaches Jack, asking him to be the inside man for a planned heist at the casino. Jack carefully considers the odds; it all looks so simple but even a professional like Jack cannot predict the cards which he will be dealt.
Cast
- Clive OwenClive OwenClive Owen is an English actor, who has worked on television, stage and film. He first gained recognition in the United Kingdom for portraying the lead in the ITV series Chancer from 1990 to 1991...
... Jack Manfred - Kate HardieKate HardieKate Hardie is a British actress, who has appeared in a number of film and television roles.-Biography:Hardie's stage name is derived from those of both her parents: Jean Hart and comedian turned naturalist Bill Oddie.-Career:...
... Bella - Alex KingstonAlex KingstonAlexandra Elizabeth "Alex" Kingston is an English actress. She is most widely known for her roles as Dr. Elizabeth Corday on the NBC medical drama ER and as River Song in Doctor Who.-Early life and education:...
... Jani de Villiers - Gina McKeeGina McKeeGeorgina "Gina" McKee is an English actor known for her television roles in Our Friends in the North , The Lost Prince and The Forsyte Saga ; and her portrayal of Bella in the film Notting Hill ....
... Marion Nell - Nicholas Ball... Jack Snr.
- Alexander MortonAlexander MortonAlexander "Sandy" Morton is a Scottish actor.-Acting career:Morton trained in London at the Central School of Speech and Drama from 1965–68 and is well known for his roles in several leading drama series, such as Taggart, Second Sight, Between the Lines, Minder, and Casualty, movies such as...
... David Reynolds - Nick RedingNick RedingNick Reding is a British actor. During a career of more than two decades, he is probably best known for playing PC Pete Ramsey in The Bill and DI Michael Conner in Silent Witness...
... Giles Cremorne - Paul ReynoldsPaul Reynolds (actor)Paul Reynolds is an English actor. He attended the Sylvia Young Theatre School, made his start as a child actor in a variety of small parts, but is perhaps most recognised for his role as Thatcherite Colin Mathews in Press Gang, "Kevin" in Ghostbusters of East Finchley and as Sammy Dobbs the...
... Matt - Barnaby KayBarnaby KayBarnaby Kay is a British actor noted for his roles in television, stage and film, and as a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company.Kay is the son of the actor Richard Kay , and the grandson of entertainer Arthur Kay...
... Car Dealer
Reception
The film critics aggregate website Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
gave a 98% positive rating based on 53 reviews. Critic Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
gave the film three stars, remarking that the point of the film was not the plot, but the atmosphere and characterzation. He also lauded the realistic depiction of the casino itself. Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden is an American writer, music critic, film critic, and poet.Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963...
in the New York Times called the movie, "a breezy meditation on life as a game of chance".
The film grossed $6,201,143 at the North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n box office, and a further $ 873,925 internationally.