The Cooler (2003)

Memorable, crazy movie

Good start, but then it gets ruined

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

Not since Martin Scorsese's Casino has a gambling film occupied so much emotion and poignancy. Wayne Kramer's The Cooler is a brilliant piece of film, accomplishing a great deal with its ensemble cast, effective characters, a screenplay that is blunt and firm throughout, among other things. This is what you call an unsung miracle.The story revolves around Bernie Lootz, played by William H. Macy. He is unlucky, to say the least, depressed, and well into a midlife crisis. His unluckiness has provided him with good opportunities with Shelly (Baldwin), who runs the Shangri-La casino in Las Vegas. Bernie is a cooler, whose job is to head over to a table or a machine when a person is winning big and, since he is so shamelessly unlucky, hopefully break their streak. He is miserable and unsatisfied, until he meets a beautiful waitress named Natalie (Bello). Natalie and him have a connection, where they both understand each other since they are in the position of an outcast.Shelly is aggravated because he notices a change in Bernie's appearance and lifestyle. He is old-fashioned and so used to playing things by the book. That explains the cut-throat tactics he resorts to when players come in and try to cheat the system. He is a brutal man with a granular outlook. He is constantly resisting change, especially when he is at a meeting and shown a model of what should be the next breakthrough in casino history. It isn't just a casino, but an IMAX theater, an entertainment system, and equipped with a roller-coaster. He is informed that the establishment will make its earnings back in a few years, but Shelly is displeased and frustrated. He doesn't believe in civil disobedience or the handling of things "the right way." He believes in the unwritten book of the world.In a way, this story parallels the one told in the Nicolas Cage drama Leaving Las Vegas. Both stories are about depressed and lonely men, one on a never-ending alcohol binge, the other an unlucky soul, who both find solace in women of equally depressing lifestyles, and always feel bribed of true happiness. Even Maria Bello sort of looks like Elizabeth Shue from the film. Not to mention, both stories are told with fierce writing, with direction of equally impressive status.The direction in the film could be consider film noir, in the way it puts tracking shots, atmosphere, and grain in the picture. Everything about the film is slick and blooming with incorruptible adrenaline and fire. Be sure to pay attention to serene and subtle instances that could easily go unnoticed. There is a magnificent scene in the middle of the picture, where Shelly confronts Natalie in Bernie's apartment, armed with two goons. Shelly does the unthinkable, and afterwards, him and the two goons look on with a feeling of dread and sorrow for their actions. Shelly is the last one on the planet to admit regret in a decision or an action, but when the camera cleverly focuses on his face you can smell it on him. The goons, who I believe don't say a word in the picture, are in disbelief. They knew Shelly was mean, but they never knew he was immorally low.Macy gives an astonishing performance, and assists in making The Cooler an involving and poignant character study, rather than a basic, one-dimensional "woe is me" type ballad. Baldwin gives a career-worthy performance, his character ranging from competent and justifiable, to morally and devilishly lacking. Bello's work as Natalie is equally commendable, and her character provides a dark, blink and you miss it sort of backstory that is equal parts saddening and enlightening.The Cooler is a real beauty in film, and an overlooked gem, like many of the same breed. Aside from the gritty writing, the undeniably exceptional performances, and the attractive and rich direction, what makes this film even more commendable is its protagonist. We inherently feel sorry for the man, as we imagine how depressing, soul-crushing, and utterly dehumanizing it is to be devalued to the point where your job is to make others miserable. It is not his fault. If he was taken with even an ounce of humanity and care, he would be in a grand position.Starring: William H. Macy, Maria Bello, and Alec Baldwin. Directed by: Wayne Kramer.

The Cooler is the movie "Casino" with heart. Bernie Lootz, the main character in The Cooler, has such bad luck that he can make your great luck instantly go bad. All he has to do is touch a hot gaming table to make it go cold. Really cold. Lootz lives by himself at the cheap in every way Better Life motel where his cat runs away, his flowers always die, and he has to listen to the guy next door screwing a hooker. The poor guy can't even get cream for his coffee when he works.Bernie gets paid to spread his miserable luck to the gaming tables at the Shangra-LA Casino, an old school, downtown casino that is out of touch with the business plan, and profits, of the contemporary Disneyland, family vacation style of Las Vegas. Shangri-La is run by Shelly Kaplow, a ruthless, mob-linked manager whose utter lack of ethics has no bounds.Things change because Bernie is going to leave Las Vegas in a few days. Turns out Shelly and Bernie go back decades, all the way back to when Shelly broke one of Bernie's knees over a gambling debt. They have remained partners and as close to friends as either man can stand. Shelly hires Natalie, a cute cocktail waitress and once in a while hooker, to lure Bernie to continue to work at Shangri-La.The performances in this film are extraordinary. William H. Macy as Bernie offers as brilliant a performance as an actor can achieve in any role. I had never head of Maria Bello until I saw this film for the first time a few years ago. Her Natalie is stunning, absolutely stunning. It includes nuances few actresses can accomplish, plus she has that smile, that gorgeous, gorgeous smile. Alec Baldwin gives perhaps his best performance ever as the thoroughly amoral casino manager who has no qualms about breaking knees or serving fatal doses of heroin to his lounge singer. He deservedly achieved an Academy Award nomination as best supporting actor. Ron Livingston, who gained fame as Capt. Nixon in Band of Brothers, plays Harvard educated Larry Solokov, a whiz kid who is going to transform the Shangri-La into a Steven Wynn type casino.The Cooler is a special film, in part, because of the themes it successfully addresses, and the manner in which it addresses them; friendship, child abandonment, the true definition of luck, and what constitutes love. The lighting, cinematography, and music all contribute significantly to the film's essence. The screen literally lights up when Bernie and Natalie feel their connection.There is a scene in which Shelly catches Bernie's appalling son, Mikey, convincingly played by Shawn Hatosy, cheating at the craps table. Shelly violently maims Mikey the same way he permanently injured Bernie. It's as brutal a scene as it is effective. But there is also a very touching love scene is which Bernie and Natalie connect in every way lovers can.

As Golden Age perceptions uneasily change hands with New Money in today's Las Vegas, a casino owner with nostalgic leanings towards the city's heyday finds himself caught up short by the new corporate blood; worse, his favorite "cooler" (or, gambler's jinx) has fallen in love with a cocktail waitress, which has turned his luck around. Despite a snazzy design, some fine acting, and an apparent love for film noir, "The Cooler" doesn't seem to have anything new up its sleeve. The broads are still tough, the mobsters are still busting kneecaps in back alleys, and the sad sacks and wiseacres are still hanging around, hoping to get lucky. The ubiquitous Alec Baldwin does well with a complicated character (the casino boss with a soft spot who still has to play the heavy), but there's too much of him--and when Baldwin gets a head of steam going, rattling off at the mouth with fill-in-the-blank profanities, he's not showing us anything fresh or exciting. Ditto Paul Sorvino as the drug-addicted lounge lizard past his prime, or Ron Livingston as a smug Harvard stooge who wants to take over. William H. Macy has some terrific moments as the self-proclaimed loser who gets a new lease on life via working girl Maria Bello (a second generation Sharon Stone), but I'm not sure how convincing that finale is. The movie's point seems to be "Casinos don't appreciate it when a gambler wins", yet the bittersweet finish belies this, probably for the sake of the box-office. ** from ****

This movie has a great soundtrack and even better acting. Still, it probably falls in the love it or hate it category. Some might criticize the film for being too formulaic, or for the improbability of the plot line. I would wager a pretty tall stack of chips that those people also identify with the new Casino management, as opposed to Baldwin's character. I mean, come on, the whole film is primarily about luck, with some true love thrown in for good measure. Not exactly topics that lend themselves to the scientific method of analysis. To me, the whole thing just works. Even better, it is one of the most uplifting movies I have seen in years, in a dark, sleazy, corny, sort of way. Don't analyze it, just sit back and enjoy the ride. Who knows, you may be feeling lucky when the the credits roll.