Introduction
The Big Town is a 1987 American neo-noir thriller movie based on the novel “The Arm”. It is about a country boy that turns crapshooter in Chicago in the 1950s. It was directed by Ben Bolt and starred Matt Dillon as JC Cullen, Diane Lane as Lorry Dane. Other cast members are Tommy Lee Jones, George Cole, and a mighty strip joint owner with some shady connections.
The Main Story
Cullen, a farm boy from Iowa, arrives in Chicago with a talent for winning at craps and becomes a constant winner at the craps tables because he knows the odds and has lady luck on his side. Many playing on the best australia online casino no doubt feel the same way. In the movie, Cullen breaks the bank at a private craps game at the Gem Club owned by George Cole. As time passes, he becomes the pawn of two high rolling professional gamblers Mr. & Mrs Edwards. Added to this, he also becomes involved in two torrid relationships. One with Lorry Dane the embittered stripper wife of Cole and the other with the nice girl Aggie Donaldson. Cullen nearly loses his life at one point in this gambling film when he lands up in the middle of a feud between Edwards, Cole and Carpenter, the man suspected of blinding Edwards.
The Ending
The Big Town is somewhat ‘by numbers’. The bad girl is rejected, the good girl is embraced, the villain is defeated, and Cullen wins back his independence. It’s a great-looking, stylish movie, and the cast never put a foot wrong wrong in bringing this era to life on the big screen. Although the storyline is predictable, the style will have viewers on their edge of their seats waiting for outcomes at the craps table and more. A brilliant gambling movie and a definite must-watch.
The movie was ironically something of a box office flop and earned less than $2 million. This can often be the case with movies though, especially when they are niche, and certainly doesn’t mean that they aren’t much appreciated in the years following.
