Movies about gambling have emerged from practically every corner of the
world. As evidenced by the popularity of sites like
20Bet, Spanish speakers
enjoy gambling as much as anyone. It's no surprise then that two of the most
compelling movies about gambling have come out of Spain. Here we take a look
at two you might have missed.
Intacto
Spanish filmmaker Juan Carlos Fresnadillo is probably best known for directing the zombie
sequel 28 Weeks Later, but he established his reputation with the 2001
sci-fi thriller Intacto. The film stars Max Von Sydow (The Exorcist) as
Samuel, a holocaust survivor whose luck has led to him owning a casino. To
ensure his customers don't win big, Samuel employs Federico (Eusebio Poncela), who possesses the supernatural ability to
steal people's luck simply by touching them. When Samuel sacks Federico
and removes his powers in the process, Federico seeks revenge. He does
this by tracking down a plane crash survivor who is said to be the
luckiest man alive. The two engage in increasingly dangerous underground
bets, leading to a climactic game of Russian Roulette with Samuel.
Winning Streak
More light-hearted is 2012's Winning Streak. Directed by Eduard Cortés and co-written with Piti Español, the film is based on the real life antics of professional
gambler Gonzalo García-Pelayo Segovia, played by Lluís Homar. When Gonzalo devises a way to win at a local casino, he
enlists his family to pull off the con. This sees him head down a
dangerous path by enraging the casino's owner, ominously known as "The Beast" (Eduard Fernández). In real life Gonzalo devised a statistics-and-betting system that would see him net over €1.2 million in
winnings at the roulette wheel. This made him and his family the enemy of
every casino owner in the world, with one Vegas casino even threatening
Gonzalo at gunpoint to stop playing.