There is something about the tension of a high-stakes card game that is ideally suited to the moving picture. The big screen magnifies every one of the subtle changes in facial expressions that can turn the outcome of the game, and in the movies especially, there is usually more at stake for the players than a bit of money! These movies offer some of the best examples of the card-game scene ever committed to film.

The Cincinnati Kid (1965) Considered by many to be the greatest gambling movie ever made, this film centres around a marathon poker game between a cool, detached young poker player, played by Steve McQueen, and a seasoned, suspicious old master 32 red casino, played by Edward G Robinson. What seems like the entire gambling community scramble to watch the card-based equivalent of a heavyweight bout.  There’s a bit of romantic tension, too, between McQueen and Ann-Margret, both of whom have their respective partners in the room while the game is going on. As a bonus, the jazzy soundtrack features the irresistible vocals of the great Ray Charles.

Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) This is the film that turned British director Guy Ritchie into a household name all over the world. It chiefly involves four wide boys who have got in way over heads in a rigged card game, and as a result owe five hundred grand to a ruthless East End crime boss. They decide to pay the debt by robbing some drug-dealing neighbours, but hit a snag when they find out that they are not the only people to have had this idea, leading to a literally explosive conclusion.

Shade (2003) This film takes its name from a term for deception in the gambling world, and the plot centres around this theme. Sly Stallone plays a card sharp known as ‘The Dean’, whom everyone is always trying to hustle, but of course, these people are all trying to hustle each other as well, leading to a number of interesting sub-plots.

If reading about these films has put you in the mood for having a bit of a flutter, but you don’t really fancy leaving the house, you could always log on to 32Red.com and play a few complimentary online casino games. You can always put on a Ray Charles CD in the background for the full Cincinnati Kid effect!