Slot machines play a role in many iconic movies, as background to the glittering lights of the casino and sometimes, the catalyst for bigger plots.
Many casino classics feature poker and table games instead of slots. Cinematically, scenes at the poker table build tension, and you can use techniques to portray what the characters are thinking. Think zoom-ins and focusing on the eyes. They say the eyes never lie.
Perhaps that’s why poker games become such a staple in many casino-themed films, and even outside of them. In Casino Royale, James Bond plays no-limit Texas Hold’em while facing up against Dr No.
But do slot machines appear in iconic films? Yes, they do. Slots may not be as glamorous, but because of their mechanics, they can add intensity and fun to a scene. The games are typically less serious and low stakes, so slot games can be played out for comedic timing or to move the plot forward.
Join us as we recount some iconic movies with slot machine scenes.
1: The Jackpot Win – What Happens In Vegas (2008)
What Happens In Vegas is a romantic comedy starring Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher. Joy and Jack, both recovering from personal troubles in New York, fly to Las Vegas for some debauchery.
Both meet when their hotel rooms are mixed up, and they end up hitting it off. After a night of heavy drinking, the two wake up and discover they’ve made a trip to the Vegas wedding chapel.
After an argument, Jack uses a quarter in a slot machine, and what do you know, he hits the jackpot, winning $3 million. Since the two are now married, Joy says she is entitled to half of Jack’s new winnings. When the two return to New York, they try to get a divorce, but the cunning judge denies them, stating they must coexist and remain married for at least six months.
In this case, the slot machine catalyses kickstarting the enemies-to-lovers story. Joy wants to stay married to Jack so she can claim her $1.5 million of the jackpot money, while Jack wants his share of the winnings. The money is the driving force to stay married, because the judge rules that they can keep the winnings even if they divorce after the six months, provided they work on the marriage.
If the judge does not see that they are working on the marriage, the money will be tied up in litigation.
Ashton Kutcher yelling like a frat brother while people cheer him on for winning the jackpot as We Are The Champions plays in the background? Hilarious.
2: Sam Fires Don – Casino (1995)
Once again, slot machines are the catalyst for Don (Joe Bob Briggs) being fired in this film. Casino boss Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein (Robert De Niro), who oversees a Vegas casino for the Chicago Mob, is no-nonsense in this scene.
Annoyed with slot manager Don Ward, he heartlessly fires him on the casino floor. The irony in this makes it comedic, even when it’s meant to be serious. Sam questions Don over the “three jackpot wins in twenty minutes,” and asks him why he didn’t stop the machines.
Baffled, Don reasons that they won fair and square, although Sam ironically says the win was a scam. What makes this funnier is that slot outcomes can’t be manipulated, so the winners could not have rigged the machines even if they tried.
De Niro’s accent, combined with his explanation of the mechanics of 5 and 3-reel slot machines while firing Don, is unintentionally funny.
The cinematography also adds comedic value the scene, with visible slot machine sounds and lights in the back distracting the audience while De Niro’s character is going on his slot machine spiel.
3: Mr Pappa Giorgio Wins A Car – Vegas Vacation (1997)
Vegas Vacation is less of a serious film, primarily a picture where the Griswold clan comes back for another insane vacation, this time to Sin City.
The montage of Rusty (Ethan Embry) winning four cars on four separate slot machines is ridiculous. Seeing him win under an alias that he received from a bad Frank Sinatra look-alike is as baffling as it is funny. The irony of that is that no beginners come to Vegas and get that lucky, and no casinos or slot machines will offer up cars for wins on low volatility slot machines. For 25 cents a spin, no less!
When the casino worker asks for Rusty’s ID and he gives his fake ID – Mr Pappa Giorgio – you can hear a pin drop, because all the audience is thinking is, ‘this can’t be serious’.
The movie makes a mockery of the Vegas casino scene and slots, but it also shows the lengths some players will go to for a win, even if wins aren’t guaranteed. Sometimes, just the one coin can make you hit the jackpot, at least in movie logic.
4: The Slot Machine Win – Ocean’s Eleven (2007)
The Ocean’s franchise is popular for a star-studded cast and heists, but it’s also well-known for its atmospheric value. In this 2007 thriller, Danny Ocean (George Clooney) and the gang are back to target some Vegas casinos because Danny’s friend Reuben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould) got conned out of his ownership stake in a casino by ruthless businessman Willy Bank (Al Pacino), and Danny wants revenge for his friend.
The movie consists of the group’s elaborate plan to stop the casino hotel from earning an elite award status and to rig the casino’s games with very consistent payouts.
The plot has many standout moments, but perhaps it is the movie’s end where the ultimate win is paid out that is the best scene. One of the gang’s masterminds, Rusty (Brad Pitt), gives his last coin to the real hotel reviewer who is supposed to come to the hotel to review it during its opening.
He advises the man to try another slot machine, suggesting it has been paying out lots of money. Taking his advice, the man uses the quarter to play a spin on the airport slot machine, and in doing so, he wins $11 million.
While it is satisfying to watch Reuben get his casino back and the gang get revenge, it is even more satisfying to watch the Very Unpleasant Person (David Paymer), as he is nicknamed, get his jackpot.
Because the reviewer is caught in the middle of the group’s sabotage antics of the hotel throughout the movie, Rusty, rigging the airport slot machine for him is a fitting way to say sorry, and it is great to see money finally be put into the right hands.
