Casino Jack (George Hickenlooper, 2010): USA

Reviewed by Nathan Coleman. Viewed at the Graum’s Chinese Theater, AFI Fest Hollywood.

Directed by the late George Hickenlooper, who also directed ‘Hick’ Town, Casino Jack closely follows the loose humored documentary style of Hickenlooper’s earlier film. The film is based on the  influence-peddling scandal involving American lobbyist Jack Abramoff, played by Kevin Spacey. Jack Abramoff was sentenced to four years in prison for defrauding a number of Native American tribes by charging exuberant fees and bribing public officials.

The film begins with Jack starring at his reflection , he then goes on a rant about who he is and why he is innocent, ending with “I’m Jack Abramoff, and I work out.” The scene then flashes back to Jack Abramoff and his partner Mike Scanlon, played by Barry Pepper, as they develope a plan to rip off an Indian tribe. They meet before the tribes council and are quickly rebuked by the character of Graham Green. Jack then manipulates the council to have the current leader removed and replaced by a more cooperative successor. They then move to obtain a string of casino cruise ships owned by a Greek businessman and appoint Adam Kidan (Jon Levitz) to head it. Everything seems to work perfectly and they quickly find themselves on the fast track to wealth and power. However, after a string of bad decisions made by Adam, and several acts of infidelity made by Mike, things quickly begin spiraling out of control for Jack Abramoff and a sequence of hilarious events ensue for the lobbyist.

The film is clearly meant to create an awareness of the corruption in American politics. George Hickenlooper uses political satire heavily to relay to the viewer how ridiculous the events surrounding the Abramoff scandal were. The narrative form is developed with a sense of sarcasm and the cinematography is almost formulated like a documentary, with very little stylistic attributes. Although the film uses humor to create a sense of light heartedness in the audience, conveying Hickenlooper’s message is the key to this film.

Casino Jack is a wildly entertaining film that will keep you laughing throughout. It raises a serious issue about the amount of corruption in American politics today. Kevin Spacey and Berry Pepper deliver one of their best performances and it is difficult to keep from being swept along with their comedic adventure involving wealth, politics, and corruption.