Poker Movie Posters

When it first came out no one was really impressed with Rounders. It lacked enough action to really pull in a huge theaters crowd and the critics felt that the story line was weak. Even though the movie Rounders was not deemed successful by theater standards, it has defiantly gained a cult like following. Most poker players love the movie and consider it Matt Damon’s biggest success. There are even some poker players who, when asked why they decided to become professional poker players, say that they were inspired by the movie Rounders.

In addition to Matt Damon, who played the role of Mike McDermott, a true poker star, the other main characters in the movie include Lester “Worm” Murphy who was played by Edward Norton, and Jo, Mike’s girlfriend, played by Gretchen Mol. Filming of Rounders took place mostly in New York during 1997, and the film was released in theaters during the middle of September in 1998. The film was directed by John Dahl. John Malkovitch was cast in the role of Teddy, the tough poker playing Russian.

The plot of the movie is fairly simple. Mike McDermott is a reformed gambler. Instead of reaching for cards, he is studying to be a lawyer. Things seem to be going okay until he finds himself owing money so some people who would be more than happy to take their payment in his blood. Desperate to come up with cash, McDermott does the only thing he can think of. He starts to play poker.

The game that is played during Rounders is called Texas Hold ‘em. Today the game is the most common type of poker played at the casinos. Nearly half of all the participants in the World Series of Poker play Texas Hold ‘em. Many people feel that the reason that the particular variety of poker has become so successful has a lot to do with Rounders.

In the beginning, most of the fans of Rounders, the people who thought it was the best movie ever made, were all poker players. Not only were they happy that the movie featured poker, they were also thrilled with the casting of Damon in the lead. Damon is a respected poker player who has competed in the World Series of Poker. Now that Damon has become a huge movie start, and has quite a gathering of fans, more and more people have fallen in love with Rounders. Many poker players are very pleased with the way that their game was portrayed in the movie, saying that despite the obvious drama of the storyline, that the poker games were actually very authentic looking.

Fans of Rounders have been clamoring for a sequel for the past decade. They cannot wait to learn more about Mike McDermott. There is talk that a sequel is in the works and since the IMDB has the suggested title, Rounders II listed as in development. This means that while it is a far cry from being a sure thing, it is more than just wishful thinking.