Snake Eyes (1998)

A shady police detective finds himself in the middle of a murder conspiracy at an important boxing match in an Atlantic City casino.

Director:

Brian De Palma

Writers:

Brian De Palma (story), David Koepp (story)

Stars:

Nicolas Cage, Gary Sinise, John Heard

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nicolas Cage	...	Rick Santoro
Gary Sinise	...	Commander Kevin Dunne
John Heard	...	Gilbert Powell
Carla Gugino	...	Julia Costello
Stan Shaw	...	Lincoln Tyler
Kevin Dunn	...	Lou Logan
Michael Rispoli	...	Jimmy George
Joel Fabiani	...	Charles Kirkland
Luis Guzmán	...	Cyrus (as Luis Guzman)
David Anthony Higgins	...	Ned Campbell
Mike Starr	...	Walt McGahn
Tamara Tunie	...	Anthea
Chip Zien	...	Mickey Alter
Michaella Bassey	...	Tyler's Party Girl #2
Paul Joseph Bernardo	...	Casino Security #1

Storyline

Ricky Santoro is a flamboyant and corrupt Atlantic City cop with a dream: become so well connected that he can become mayor. In lieu of that, he'll settle for keeping his comfortable lifestyle. On the night of the heavyweight boxing championship, Rick becomes mixed up in the assassination of the Secretary of Defense, an assassination involving his best friend. Becoming the investigating officer in the case, Rick soon uncovers a conspiracy to kill the Secretary and a mysterious woman in white. The conspiracy was shocking, but not half as shocking as the identity of its mastermind.

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Plot Keywords:

long take | boxing | conspiracy | assassination | casino | 

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Taglines:

Now you see it. Now you don't.

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Genres:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some violence

Details

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 August 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ojos de serpiente

Filming Locations:

Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$73,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$16,310,373, 9 August 1998, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$55,585,389, 20 December 1998

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$103,891,409

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, DeBart, Touchstone Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The ringside drunk says, "Here comes the pain," a line also spoken in another Brian De Palma film, Carlito's Way (1993).

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Goofs

When the shooter falls down dead, his rifle is clearly a rubber prop, as it clearly bends when it hits the ground.

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Quotes

[Points at the bodyguard's hand on his arm]
'Ricky' Santoro: See where your hand is? That's a felony.

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Crazy Credits

The end credits scroll over a construction site scene (presumably the new casino), closing in tighter and tighter until the final shot is of a bright red jewel embedded in a concrete pillar that the workmen are installing. Most of the time the jewel is hidden under the hand of one of the workers. The ring was worn by the red-haired woman/Navy agent who was part of Commander Kevin Dunn's scheme.

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Connections

References Vertigo (1958)

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Soundtracks

Come On
Written by Terry Lewis, Jimmy Jam, James Wright & Barry White
Performed by Barry White
Courtesy of A&M Records, Inc.
By Arrangement with PolyGram Film & TV Music

User Reviews

falls apart after the intro

Cage is a slick, crooked Atlantic City cop with dreams of making it to the big time. While attending a highly publicized boxing match with friend and Naval officer Sinise, he finds himself in the midst of a conspiracy after an important political figure is assassinated by a Middle Eastern terrorist, and for the first time he decides to try and complete his job in honest fashion. Stylish but disappointing thriller begins with nifty camera work and has the makings of something really special, but once you get past all the fancy tricks there's really nothing left to hold your interest. Even worse, the film clearly suffers from some last minute edits. **