The Cooler (2003)

In an old school Las Vegas casino, its top gambling jinx breaks his curse when he falls in love, much to his boss' consternation.

Director:

Wayne Kramer

Writers:

Frank Hannah, Wayne Kramer

Stars:

William H. Macy, Maria Bello, Alec Baldwin

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 25 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William H. Macy	...	Bernie Lootz
Alec Baldwin	...	Shelly Kaplow
Maria Bello	...	Natalie Belisario
Shawn Hatosy	...	Mikey
Ron Livingston	...	Larry Sokolov
Paul Sorvino	...	Buddy Stafford
Estella Warren	...	Charlene
Arthur J. Nascarella	...	Nicky Fingers Bonnatto
Joey Fatone	...	Johnny Cappella
M.C. Gainey	...	Highway Officer (as MC Gainey)
Ellen Greene	...	Doris
Don Scribner	...	Lou
Tony Longo	...	Tony
Richard Israel	...	Marty Goldfarb
Timothy Landfield	...	The Player

Storyline

The unluckiest man in Vegas - a guy whose bad luck is contagious - is used by the last of the old time mob run casinos to kill high rollers' action. That is, until he falls in love with a cocktail waitress and gets "lady luck," which throws the situation into reverse. Things turn nasty when the casino director tries to break up the romance.

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Plot Keywords:

casino | sex in bed | girl in panties | public nudity | leg spreading | 

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Taglines:

Love ...you have to play to win

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexuality, violence, language and some drug use

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 January 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cooler

Filming Locations:

Landmark Hotel - Convention Center Drive and Paradise Road, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,200,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$128,973, 30 November 2003, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$8,243,880, 21 March 2004

Company Credits

Production Co:

ContentFilm,Pierce/Williams Entertainment,Furst Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Bernie pulls up to his motel room, just prior to discovering Natalie's injuries following Shelly's visit to their room, the faulty neon sign for the EZ Mini Market is reflected in his car's windscreen. At one point it displays EZ Mark, a reference to the earlier story about how he and Shelly used to identify potential victims for a con, marking them with chalk. At the point Natalie confesses to having been paid by Shelly to get close to him, she calls Bernie an Easy (EZ) Mark.

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Goofs

When Bernie plays craps, he is shown placing two stacks of chips side-by-side on the pass line. This is incorrect - a player's entire bet must be placed in one vertical stack. AFTER a point is established, a player make "take the odds" by placing a second stack of chips BEHIND the original pass line bet. A second stack of chips on the pass line next to the player's bet would be assumed by the crew to be a toke - a bet for the dealers.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Casino employee: Where's Bernie, they're killing us. Yeah, we need him right away.

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Crazy Credits

Maria Bello's face is reflected on the side of the "Lady Luck" hotel.

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Alternate Versions

The film was cut by the MPAA to achieve an R rating.

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Connections

Features Lost Horizon (1937)

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Soundtracks

Almost Like Being in Love
(1947)
Music by Frederick Loewe
Lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner (as Allan Lerner)
Performed by Nick D'Egidio
Courtesy of TSR Records, Ltd.

User Reviews

Brilliant Fable

Wonderfully acted modern day fable of love luck ego venality and redemption. Baldwin and Macy are their brilliant opaque selves. The sex scenes are realistic. The director never gets in the way of the linear narrative and the A, B and C stories intertwine like rope. The camera loves Macy as it has in every single frame he's ever filled. Baldwin slips into his character like legs into stockings, Maria Bello proves beyond her role in PAYBACK that she can play in the Bigs and all the secondary character acting is seamless. A film more than a movie. A sleeper hit to me. You'll love it or hate it.