A casino is a place where people can gamble on games of chance and in some cases a little skill. Some examples of these games include craps, roulette, blackjack, video poker and baccarat. Casinos usually provide a variety of entertainment for patrons, including restaurants, free drinks and stage shows. Traditionally, casinos have also incorporated various luxury amenities in order to attract customers and keep them gambling for longer periods of time.
Lighting and other aspects of visual design are crucial to casino success because they shape the environment and create a specific atmosphere that is conducive to gaming. Video screens can also play a functional role in a casino by providing additional information about game rules or facilitating sports betting.
Sam Rothstein (Robert De Niro), a Jewish American gambling expert handicapper, is hired by the Chicago Outfit to run the day-to-day operations of the Tangiers casino in Las Vegas. He takes on a partner, Nicky Santoro (Joe Pesci), and a streetwise chip hustler, Ginger McKenna (Stone). Casino follows their rise and fall as they deal with mob infiltration, competing casinos and changing times in Las Vegas.
There is one certainty in the world of gambling: The house always wins. While casinos have built-in advantages that ensure they make a gross profit over the long term, there is an element of randomness in gambling that encourages people to cheat, steal or lie to win. As such, casinos spend a lot of time and money on security. On the floor, dealers are trained to watch for blatant cheating such as palming or marking dice, while pit bosses and table managers have a more holistic view of their tables to spot patterns in bet placement and spotting potential liars.