I first encountered The Gambler (1974) in my freshman year of college. I picked up a used VHS of the film from TLA Video. I liked James Caan and I was familiar with director Karel Reisz work so I thought I’d give it a shot. I was immediately absorbed in its bleak character study. It became something of a favorite movie of mine for a time. It was a film I’d recommend as an under appreciated classic of 70s cinema along with Payday (1973) and Milestones (1975).
The Gambler follows a college english professor named Axel Freed (James Caan) whose gambling debts have got him in trouble. But rather than just pay back what he owes he compulsively gambles again and again, getting further and further into trouble. Freed’s gambling addiction becomes a lust for self-destruction.
The Gambler is James Caan’s film. It’s a character study of an addict whose compulsions are beyond reason or control. The camera sticks with its subject, hardly ever breaking away for reaction shots or cutaways. Reisz camera is fixed on Caan’s face. The camera records the wheels turning in Freed’s mind as the lens stares down James Caan’s pained eyes. The viewer is immersed in Freed’s world of chance as he free falls into debt and eventually oblivion.
The Gambler was written by controversial filmmaker James Toback. Toback’s sexual misconduct allegations reveal a compulsively self-destructive personality that preyed on innocent people. Toback, like Freed, seems to live only for the rush of personal gratification. It is impossible to watch The Gambler now and not think of the parallels between screenwriter and character.
But Toback’s disgrace should not diminish the legacy of The Gambler. The Gambler, as a film, is after all the product of a collaboration between cast and crew, encompassing numerous individuals. Since its release The Gambler has become one of the most influential character studies produced by the “New Hollywood” of the seventies. The Gambler‘s influence can be felt in the films of Abel Ferrara and Paul Schrader. It was even remade as a vehicle for Mark Wahlberg.
