The Gambler Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

The Gambler Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov June 5, 2021

Karel Reisz's "The Gambler" (1974) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Via Vision Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include exclusive new audio commentary by cinema author and critic Matthew Asprey; exclusive new video interview with first assistant editor Sue Kingsley; new program with film music historian Jon Burlingame; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

You gotta stop gambling and start paying your debts, man. Because right now the only thing standing between a baseball bat and your head is my word.

The great revelation that emerges from this excellent film is that compulsive gamblers and hardcore junkies have the same problem. If they don’t get their fix, they can’t function properly, but the more they feed their addiction, the more irrational they become. Both vehemently reject help as well, which is why they usually end up self-destructing.

The character that James Caan plays, Alex Freed, is modeled after James Toback, who delivered the screenplay for the film to director Karel Reisz. (Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s novella “The Gambler” is credited as an inspiration as well, but there are major discrepancies that make it difficult to see the film as a cinematic adaptation of it). Like Freed, Toback was once part of the academic community and struggled with a gambling addiction that nearly destroyed him. In the early ’70s, after hitting rock bottom, he somehow bounced back and then began describing his misery on paper.

In the film, Freed (James Caan) does not do any writing at all. He is frequently seen reading classic literature in front of his students and asking them to explain what they get out of it. As the students struggle to properly deconstruct the texts, Freed then provides contemporary analogies that are meant to help them, but actually details the nature of his addiction, which turns out to be a state of mind that constantly demands that he embraces dangerous risks. It is why after he leaves the classroom, he spends the rest of his time gambling large amounts of money in the city’s legal and illegal betting parlors -- the feeling that he could lose everything is a unique rush he simply can’t get enough of.

When his debts become so big that the mafia comes looking for him, Freed decides to make one final big bet with money borrowed from his mother (Jacqueline Brookes).

While it is very easy to focus on Caan’s superb performance and praise how it exposes the misery of his character, The Gambler is unquestionably a huge team effort. Indeed, the downfall of this character is as disturbing as it is because it is not an intimate event; he is surrounded by various people that are deeply troubled by his addiction but are unable to help him. In other words, their frustration completes his misery and, in an oddly twisted way, even exacerbates its destructive effects.

Reisz’s treatment of Toback’s screenplay is excellent as well. A lot of the material is quite rough even by ‘70s standards, but it never feels like Reisz is trying to deliver a miserabilist drama of the kind that would function as an endurance test. Also, the film is completely free of the fake moralistic preaching that usually places a big target sign on society. This is why its character looks so authentic -- he is not a symbol of some manufactured failure or injustice, just a human being that has made a series of awful, life-altering mistakes.

The only problematic aspect of the production is Jerry Fielding's use of music from Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 1. On paper it does seem like a fine touch because of the history of its conception and themes that are highlighted in it, but it is very clearly incompatible with the urban environment in which Caan’s character exists.

*According to old reports, at the time when Reisz began shooting The Gambler, which was his first American film, Caan was battling a cocaine addiction.

The Gambler Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Gambler arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Via Vision Entertainment.

The release is sourced from an older master that was supplied by Paramount Pictures. Obviously, if fully restored in 4K the film will look better, but this Blu-ray release offers a very strong upgrade in quality over the very old DVD release of the film.

There are three areas where meaningful improvements can be made. First, there are a couple of darker sequences where the grain becomes noisy and delineation and shadow definition struggle. I took screencapture #23 to demonstrate what you should expect. (By the way, with specific encoding optimizations, this particular effect would have been significantly minimized. Another way for you to minimize it is by upscaling to 4K). Second, even though the current color scheme is very nice, some nuances can be expanded and rebalanced, and if they are the entire film will look fresher. However, I think that the primaries are quite nice as they are. Third, some white specks pop up here and there, which means that with a bit of cosmetic work the film can look even healthier. This is it. Density and fluidity should be superior, but they are still quite nice and the visuals hold up well. Also, there are no traces of problematic digital corrections, so even though you will notice the inferior grain exposure I mentioned above, on your screen the film will have a fine organic appearance. Image stability is good as well. All in all, while it would have been great to have the film fully restored in 4K, the current presentation is surprisingly good. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

The Gambler Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The audio is clean and stable. I did not detect any distracting age-related imperfections either. However, from time to time it does sound a bit 'thin' on my system. My guess is that if it is redone by the folks at Paramount it will be rounded better and likely opened up in the mid/high ranges as well. I could be wrong because this is an early '70s film that emphasizes realism, but with so many older films getting hugely impressive new Dolby Atmos tracks, I think that it is fair to speculate that some minor yet meaningful improvements can be made.

The Gambler Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - remastered vintage trailer for The Gambler. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

• After the Game - an exclusive new video essay by critic Chris O'Neill. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• On the Morning After: Composing The Gambler - in this exclusive new program, film music historian Jon Burlingame discusses Jerry Fielding's soundtrack and the manner in which music from Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 1 is used in The Gambler. There are some particularly interesting comments about Fielding's first encounter with Karel Reisz's encounter, as well James Toback's story. In English, not subtitled. (11 min).

• In on the Cut - in this exclusive new video interview, first assistant editor Sue Kingsley remembers how she became involved with The Gambler (apparently believing that she would work with James Coburn, not James Caan), and discusses Karel Reisz's working methods, Jerry Fielding's personality and soundtrack, Lauren Hutton and Paul Servino's performances, etc. In English, not subtitled. (20 min).

• Archival Interview with Karel Reisz - in this archival interview, Karel Reisz discusses his life, work, and career, as well as production of The Gambler. The interview was conducted for The British Entertainment History project in 1991. In English, not subtitled. (123 min).

• Commentary - in this exclusive new audio commentary, cinema author and critic Matthew Asprey Gear discusses the noir sensibility in film noir during the '70s, the production of The Gambler, the key conflicts in it, the careers and legacies of the people that made the film, etc. It is very nice commentary, so if you enjoy the film find the time to listen to it in its entirety.

The Gambler Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A lot of people believe that James Caan's best work is in The Gambler. I think that it is awfully difficult to prove them wrong because there is something extra special about the character he plays in this film. I am unsure if it can be linked to the addiction Caan was struggling with at the time when the film was made, but when you watch how his character slides into the abyss of madness it just does not feel like it is scripted. It really is a tremendous performance. Via Vision Entertainment's release of The Gambler is sourced from an older but good organic master that was supplied by Paramount Pictures. It also features a very nice selection of exclusive new and archival bonus features. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.