Casino is a popular setting for movies, perhaps because it’s an easy way for viewers to escape into another world. The main characters in these films are often suave, charismatic and seem to be living the high life – a fantasy for many viewers.

Casinos invest a lot of time, money and energy into security. They have cameras that watch every table, window and doorway. These can be focused on suspicious patrons by a team of workers in a separate room filled with banks of security monitors. The cameras also record all actions within the casino and are easily reviewed after a crime or cheating incident has occurred.

Something about gambling seems to encourage people to cheat, steal or scam their way into a jackpot instead of winning through random chance. Casinos spend a large amount of time and money on security and use cameras and other technological measures to prevent this.

In addition to this, casinos are able to provide high rollers with extravagant inducements such as free spectacular entertainment, reduced-fare transportation and elegant living quarters. These players are the highest producers of gross profit and account for a significant portion of casino business.

Martin Scorsese’s 1995 film Casino follows Sam “Ace” Rothstein (Robert De Niro) and his rise to power in the Tangiers, a mob-owned casino in Las Vegas. The movie lays bare the complex web of corruption that was centered in Las Vegas at the time, with tendrils reaching out to politicians, Teamsters unions and the Chicago mob.