Atlantic City

Starring:Burt Lancaster, Susan Sarandon, Michel Piccoli, Hollis McLaren, Robert Joy, Moses Znaimer, Robert Goulet, Al Waxman, Kate Reid, Angus MacInnes, Sean Sullivan, Wallace Shawn, Harvey Atkin, Norma Dell'Agnese, Louis Del Grande, John McCurry, Eleanor Beecroft, Cec Linder, Sean McCann, Vincent Glorioso
Director: Louis Malle
Studio: Paramount
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com essential video
Though set in America, this was directed by Frenchman Louis Malle, and the atmosphere is very European. An edgy character study of losers and would be winners, this was written by playwright John Guare.

Susan Sarandon's sad-eyed appeal won her an Academy Award nomination for her role as a croupier hoping to learn the ropes and move on to the more glamorous casinos of Monte Carlo. Burt Lancaster, who was also nominated for an Oscar, turns in one of the most memorable performances of his career. As Lou, an aged two-bit hood, he brags about his flamboyant career, reveling in gangster chic that existed only in his mind. He discovers, sadly, that he is of more noble stock than he realized when he helps Sarandon's character out of a mess involving her unsavory ex-husband and a drug sale.

Customer Reviews:

A tender portrait of passion and dignity regained..........2006-12-18

In the mid-'70s, Malle embarked upon a decade-long visit to America where, after 'Pretty Baby,' a sensitive but finally tedious look at child prostitution in 1971 New Orleans, he makes 'Atlantic City', in which an aging small-time mobster sees his romanticized memories of villainy become reality when he acts as father confessor, protector and, finally, lover to a lonely young croupier...

Part romantic comedy, part thriller, part fairy-tale, the film is simultaneously mythic and rooted in reality and charms through its wry acknowledgment of human delusions and its tender portrait of passion and dignity regained...

"Atlantic City" received critical acclaim and was nominated for five Oscars (best actor, best actress, best director, best film and best original screenplay), although it won none... It was to be Louis Malle's most successful film...

Viva Atlantic City.......2006-07-17

Actors of Burt Lancaster's caliber are, sadly, long gone. They looked like men, acted like men and could be sensitive when the scene called for it, but, always in a manly way. What happend to all the strong male leads? Sigh, anyway Louis Malle captured the seediness of Atlantic City and the powers that be attempt to "turn a whore into a lady" and reap the obscene profits from the gambling industry. Lou, a low level, outdated mobster left over from a bygone era, is attracted to a down on her luck waitress, wannabe black dealer, well played by the exausted looking Susan Saranden before she became a humorless political activist. Enter her loser exhusband and brainless, hippy, very pregnant, sister. They need a place to crash and hide since exhubby also got a hold of some cocaine that belongs to the mob. Also, putting Susan in harms way, since the mob wants their cocaine back. Enjoy!

AN INTENSE CHARACTER STUDY DEPICTING HOW ONE MAN CLINGS ONTO OLD HABITS YET SURVIVES A FAST CHANGING WORLD.......2006-03-13

FIRST THOUGHTS:

Seeing trailers of this film that showed Burt Lancaster in an uncharacteristically rueful light kept me from seeing this wonderfully understated film for 26 years!

IN A NUTSHELL: SHOWING RATHER THAN TELLING MAKES FOR GREAT STORYTELLING

For 104 minutes we live a few days of Lou's [Burt Lancaster] life with him. We see what he sees, and feel what he feels. Through the showing of his daily grind, we come to empathize, and eventually to respect the man that he is, though he desperately wants to be someone else.

WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT: [WARNING -*- PLOT SPOILERS BELOW -*-]

So who is Lou? Lou is an aging relic who lives in today but whose mind is on yesteryears long past. Yet -- he still is what he seems always to have been, a wanna-a-be gangster. Right now, his daily routine consists of looking after an old widow for cigarette money and cheap rent, collecting quarters as a numbers runner, and watching Sally [Susan Sarandon] through his venetian blinds. It is watching Sally perform her evening ritual of undressing while squezzing lemon juice over her arms and breasts that is the high point of his recent existence. Doesn't sound like much, but all that changes rather quickly when Lou seizes the opportunity to become a big-shot, sugar-daddy for Sally by literally stumbling into drug trafficing. It was quite by chance, but also by design, and Lou finds himself in for some high-stakes which involve some mortal risks. How he resolves the risks is at the core of both the film, "Atlantic City" and Lou, the human being.

THE EFFECT OF THE FILMMAKERS:

The director of the film, Louis Malle, a renowned French filmmaker, weaves his story of life in America's bottom rung from the perspective of someone on the outside looking in. Though it may not be an objective perspective, it is a relatively fresh one with an effective script by John Guare, who also wrote, "The Six Degrees of Separation". The effect of Guare and Malle on "Atlantic City" was simply to breathe new life, and a fresh angle into the "Crime/ Romance-Drama/ Casino/ Drug-Ring/ Life-Choices" genre which had long ago become a very tired and cliched topic.

THE CAST/ DIRECTOR/ SCREENWRITER:

---*- Burt Lancaster - Lou
---*- Susan Sarandon - Sally
---*- Michel Piccoli - Joseph
---*- Kate Reid - Grace
---*- Robert Joy - Dave
---*- Hollis McLaren - Chrissie

---*- Louis Malle - Director
---*- John Guare - Screenwriter

MAJOR AWARDS: THE ACADEMY AND GOLDEN GLOBE ONLY [Won many foreign awards]

---*- Best Actor [Nom] Burt Lancaster 1981 Academy
---*- Best Actress [Nom] Susan Sarandon 1981 Academy
---*- Best Director [Nom] Louis Malle 1981 Academy
---*- Best Original Screenplay [Nom] John Guare 1981 Academy
---*- Best Picture [Nom] 1981 Academy
---*- Best Actor- Drama [Nom] Burt Lancaster 1981 Golden Globe
---*- Best Director [nom] Louis Malle 1981 Golden Globe
---*- Best Foreign Film [nom] 1981 Golden Globe

ABOUT THE DVD:

It is an excellent widescreen transfer, but has only one theatrical trailer for a special feature, and you can choose English subtitles if you are hard of hearing.

BOTTOM LINE: POTENT FILM

This is a much better film than I expected it to be. Put simply, Lancaster and Sarandon had great chemistry, and ignited every scene they were in, especially in those they were in together. "ATLANTIC CITY" is a case of excellent acting combined with a taut script that shows rather than tells, which always spells - potent film.

Masterful Malle.......2006-01-22

"Atlantic City" is one of Louis Malle's finest films. It is an engaging picture from beginning to end, portraying the annihilation of America's past. This is the result not only of Malle's vibrant direction, but also of a lively screenplay (by John Guare), a playful soundtrack (by Michel LeGrand), and polished performances by Susan Sarandon, Burt Lancaster and a cast of talented supporting players.

Sarandon plays an ambitious working girl who labors in a clam bar by day and studies to be a croupier at night. It's her desire to graduate from the gambling parlors of Atlantic City to the more prestigious casinos of Monte Carlo. Lancaster portrays an old man who shares an apartment in the same condemned building as Sarandon. He is rooted in the romantic past, at a time when gambling provided illegal thrills and Atlantic City was devoid of its tawdry modern gloss. The lives of these two people converge on the Boardwalk, where they share a tangle of bizarre adventures involving a variety of fascinating friends and strangers.

The unusual relationships which develop between the young and old characters mirror the atmospheric ambivalence of Atlantic City, where vintage architecture stands side by side with sterile steel modernity. Malle emphasizes the contrast through the use of intriguing images. Few films feature such a memorable sequence of opening scenes. As the credits roll, viewers witness the destruction of a massive old building. It crumbles in slow motion, to the accompaniment of a soundtrack punctuated by the beat of jackhammers and wrecking balls. This shot fades to the sight of Sarandon slicing lemons at an open window. While Lancaster peeps from an adjacent apartment, the object of his gaze bathes her upper body with lemon juice. One "juicy" scene succeeds another in "Atlantic City." The outrageous interplay of beauty and decay, the silly and the serious, contribute to an exotically humorous, intriguing plot. Few films are as intelligent or entertaining.

Lancasters last great role and Sarandon's first.......2005-12-08

One of the great American films was actually produced by France!

Burt Lancaster plays aging bagman Lou. He has a long distance voyeurism of Sally (Susan Sarandon) a waitress at the Casino seafood bar and wannabe blackjack dealer. He also is the bodyguard of a faded beauty queen, Grace (Kate Reid).

What brings everyone together is a visit by Sally's brother and pregnant girlfriend. He has "found" some cocaine and is looking to sell it in Atlantic City. Lou sees an opportunity and grabs it. When the crooks catch up they kill Sally's brother. But Lou has the stash. After a shootout with the crooks, Lou and Sally leave Atlantic City.

This takes place in the 1980's Atlantic City which was before all commercial casinos came to town. Malle uses this city in the midst of change as a small microcosm of the flux that the United States was in. Lou represents the old regime that is trying to hold on to the old ways. Sally represents everyone trying to get ahead in the new America that is more interested in the bottom line than the people who make the money for them.

Both Lancaster and Sarandon deservedly received Oscar nominations but Kate Reid also gave a superlative performance.

This is a film to be savored like a fine wine, that only gets better with age.

DVD EXTRAS: None

Grover Washington Jr.: Live From Atlantic City

Average customer rating:

GROVER WASHINGTON JR LIVE FROM ATLANTIC CITY

Grover Washington Jr.: Live From Atlantic City
Starring: Jr. Grover Washington
Manufacturer: Immortal
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | R&B | Styles | Music

General | Music Video & Concerts | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B000NA21ZY
Release Date: 2007-06-19

Customer Reviews:

GROVER WASHINGTON JR LIVE FROM ATLANTIC CITY.......2007-06-21

THIS IS GREAT WORK FROM GROVER,BUT IT'S THE SAME CONCERT AS "STANDING ROOM ONLY".I PURCHASED THIS NOT KNOWING I ALREADY HAD IT.JUST PACKAGED,AND NAMED DIFFERENT.I WOULD SAY DECIEVING.SOMETHING GROVER WOULDNOT ENDORSE.

Average customer rating:

American Experience: Miss America

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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( A ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000K15W3E
Release Date: 2006-10-26

Description

The country's oldest beauty contest, MISS AMERICA paints a vivid picture of an institution that has come to reveal much about a changing nation. The pageant is about commercialism and sexual politics, about big business and small towns. But beyond the symbolism lies a human story--at once moving, inspiring, infuriating, and poignant, complete with intimate interviews with former contestants and fabulous behind-the-scenes footage.

ABC News This Week Gambling with Steve Wynn

Average customer rating:

ABC News This Week Gambling with Steve Wynn

Manufacturer: ABC News
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000IMVOQY
Release Date: 2006-09-18

Description

Gambling in America- it has gone from crap games in back alleys while somebody watched for the police to the flash and glitter of Las Vegas, with it's 10,000 new hotel rooms in five months and every one of them occupied. Legal gambling mostly started here and is spreading over the country, coast to coast Not quite 50 states now have gambling in some form. Why? Because the face of gambling has now turned toward family entertainment with gambling here for adults, games and spectacles for children. Steve Wynn, a casino resort developer who is credited with spearheading this dramatic resurgence, discusses the changes and expansion happening in Las Vegas. Correspondent: David Brinkley and Jack Smith

Average customer rating:

City Confidential - Atlantic City

Manufacturer: A&E Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
ASIN: B000F6ZBQW
Release Date: 2006-04-25

Average customer rating:

complex drama with an odd twist
The opposite of its promises

Atlantic City Jackpot
Starring: Laurence Luckinbill , Graham Beckel , Regina Baff , Sam Levene , and Jerry Lacy
Director: Chuck Workman , and Rodney Amateau
Manufacturer: Fox Lorber
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B0000AKCM8
Release Date: 2003-10-07

Description

Roland is a small time con who's tired of his penny ante payoffs. Richard fancies himself a big time businessman, but lately the only thing big time about him is the debt he's in. These two men, whose lives could not be more different, become unlikely partners in a kidnapping caper where no one is quite what they seem and everyone has an angle. In the end they all could walk away with a piece of the action, but in Atlantic City everything is a game of chance and a bad hand is only a deal away.

Customer Reviews:

complex drama with an odd twist.......2006-03-12

Very different from your typical daramatic fare, good acting and story give this compelling drama a compellingness that is refreshing and absorbing.

The opposite of its promises.......2001-07-15

This is an awful movie! If you will note I titled this review "The Opposite of its promises", and the reason being is that, first of all it shows Danny DeVito on the front of the cover as if he is the main character, and yet he barely has a part, posing as the bartender at a pool and is only seen for abot forty five seconds. Also it says it is heart-felt and funny and is none of those things! The actors and actresses do a horrible job posing as their charachter and don't seem to have any depth or feeling at all. If you read the back of the jacket it says that it is about a man with almost no money and many debts to pay off and that he kidnaps a rich man's kids to get money, that is the entire film and it isn't even done well, in fact I've made this putrid film sound much more exciting and dramatic than it is. The film has absolutely no depth. It has no comedy,drama, romance, excitement or any thing like that. It is no doubt one of the worst films ever.

Learn How to Win at Advanced Craps DVD by John Patrick, America's Professonal Gambler

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Learn How to Win at Advanced Craps DVD by John Patrick, America's Professonal Gambler

Manufacturer: John Patrick Casino.com
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000AQHJSA

Charlie Rose with Steve Wynn (May 20, 1997)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Steve Wynn (May 20, 1997)

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Description

Charlie spends the hour with the president of Mirage Resorts, Steve Wynn. Wynn tells Charlie about his unusual entrance into Las Vegas commerce and culture. Wynn goes on to tell Charlie about his position on the board of the National Association for Pathological and Compulsive Gambling in Washington.

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Welcome to Atlantic City

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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BOARDWALK BEAT! shopping in Atlantic City

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BOARDWALK BEAT! shopping in Atlantic City

Manufacturer: CustomFlix
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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