Indeed, Ace Rothstein is a fictionalised version of Frank ‘Lefty’ Rosenthal, while the real-life Anthony Spilotro becomes Nicky Santoro and Geri Rosenthal becomes Ginger Rothstein. The screenplay was adapted from Nicholas Pileggi’s non-fiction book, with certain elements changed. The film stars Robert De Niro as Ace Rothstein and Joe Pesci as Nicky Santoro, with Sharon Stone as Ginger. Meanwhile, the arrival of Ace’s childhood friend, Nicky Santoro, a violent criminal and loose cannon who has plans to take over Las Vegas, spells trouble for Ace.ĭescribed as ‘ Goodfellas in Vegas’, Casino is a sprawling gangster narrative that covers multiple years and is set to a typically evocative and overlapping soundtrack that includes everything from Louis Prima and Muddy Waters to Cream and Fleetwood Mac. He meets and marries beautiful hustler Ginger, who is still close with her lowlife pimp. In Vegas, Ace quickly rises to prominence. Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein, a Chicago-based expert gambler with Mob ties, is given the opportunity to run Las Vegas casino The Tangiers. Screenwriters: Nicholas Pileggi and Martin Scorseseīased on: The non-fiction book, Casino: Love and Honour in Las Vegas, by Nicholas Pileggi. In this analysis, we take a closer look at how Martin Scorsese and Nicholas Pileggi’s Las Vegas-set crime epic was adapted from its true-crime source…

Casino 1995 script