Architecture of Happiness (2025)

Las Vegas: An Unconventional History: Part 1 - Sin City

Traces the often surprising, endlessly entertaining history of the country's most outrageous playground. Interviews with Las Vegas insiders as well as everyday citizens in search of the American Dream chronicle how Las Vegas transformed itself from remote frontier way station into the Depression-era "Gateway to the Hoover Dam," then into the mid-century gangster metropolis known as "Sin City," and finally into a family vacation destination and the fastest-growing city in the United States.

Vegas comes to China

With more than $6.9 billion U.S.dollars/year in revenue, the new gambling capital of the world is Macau, Southern China, which has overtaken Las Vegas. Chinese and American 'casino-kings' are engaged in a race to open massive super-casinos, where the winner could take all.

California Split

Carefree single guy Charlie Waters rooms with two lovely prostitutes, Barbara Miller and Susan Peters, and lives to gamble. Along with his glum betting buddy, Bill Denny, Charlie sets out on a gambling streak in search of the ever-elusive big payday. While Charlie and Bill have some lucky moments, they also have to contend with serious setbacks that threaten to derail their hedonistic betting binge.

Forced Vengeance

A casino security guard is forced into violence from when the Hong Kong mob threatens his friends.

X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes

A doctor uses special eye drops to give himself x-ray vision, but the new power has disastrous consequences.

Yours for the Asking

Casino operator Johnny Lamb hires down-on-her-luck socialite Lucille Sutton as his casino hostess, in order to help her and to improve casino income. But Lamb's pals fear he may follow Lucille onto the straight-and-narrow path, which would not be good for business. So they hire Gert Malloy and Dictionary McKinney, a pair of con-artists, to manipulate Johnny back off the path of righteousness.

Poker King

Although Randy's family is involved in the casino business, he has never shared an interest in gaming until he played Texas Hold 'Em on the Internet. Rival Uno is the manager at Randy's casion. These two bitter enemies will now face off in the Asian Poker King Championships.

The Naughty Nineties

In the gay '90s, cardsharps take over a Mississippi riverboat from a kindly captain. Their first act is to change the showboat into a floating gambling house. A ham actor and his bumbling sidekick try to devise a way to help the captain regain ownership of the vessel.

The Lady Gambles

When Joan Boothe accompanies husband-reporter David to Las Vegas, she begins gambling to pass the time while he is doing a story. Encouraged by the casino manager, she gets hooked on gambling, to the point where she "borrows" David's expense money to pursue her addiction. This finally breaks up their marriage, but David continues trying to help her.

Hard Eight

A stranger mentors a young Reno gambler who weds a hooker and befriends a vulgar casino regular.

21

Ben Campbell is a young, highly intelligent student at M.I.T. who strives to succeed. Wanting a scholarship to transfer to Harvard School of Medicine to become a doctor, Ben learns that he cannot afford the $300,000 tuition as he comes from a poor, working-class background. But one evening, Ben is introduced by his unorthodox math professor to a small but secretive club of five students, Jill, Choi, Kianna, and Fisher, who are being trained by Professor Rosa to count cards at blackjack.

Operation Petticoat

A World War II submarine commander finds himself stuck with a damaged sub, a con-man executive officer, and a group of army nurses.

What Happens in Vegas

During a wild vacation in Las Vegas, career woman Joy McNally and playboy Jack Fuller come to the sober realization that they have married each other after a night of drunken abandon. They are then compelled, for legal reasons, to live life as a couple for a limited period of time. At stake is a large amount of money.

The Castle of Cagliostro

After a successful robbery leaves famed thief Lupin the Third and his partner Jigen with nothing but a large amount of expertly crafted counterfeit bills, he decides to track down the forgers responsible—and steal any other treasures he may find in the Castle of Cagliostro, including the 'damsel in distress' he finds imprisoned there.

Owning Mahowny

Dan Mahowny was a rising star at the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. At twenty-four he was assistant manager of a major branch in the heart of Toronto's financial district. To his colleagues he was a workaholic. To his customers, he was astute, decisive and helpful. To his friends, he was a quiet, but humorous man who enjoyed watching sports on television. To his girlfriend, he was shy but engaging. None of them knew the other side of Dan Mahowny--the side that executed the largest single-handed bank fraud in Canadian history, grossing over $10 million in eighteen months to feed his gambling obsession.

The Adventures of Pluto Nash

The year is 2087, the setting is the moon. Pluto Nash, the high-flying successful owner of the hottest nightclub in the universe, finds himself in trouble when he refuses to sell his club to lunar gangster Mogan, who just happens to be helping the mysterious Rex Crater mastermind a plan to take over the entire moon.

3000 Miles to Graceland

It was an ingenious enough plan: rob the Riviera Casino's count room during an Elvis impersonator convention. But Thomas Murphy decided to keep all the money for himself and shot all his partners, including recently-freed ex-con Michael Zane. With $3.2 million at stake, the Marshals Service closing in, Michael must track down Murphy.

Casino Royale

Sir James Bond is called back out of retirement to stop SMERSH. In order to trick SMERSH, James thinks up the ultimate plan - that every agent will be named 'James Bond'. One of the Bonds, whose real name is Evelyn Tremble is sent to take on Le Chiffre in a game of baccarat, but all the Bonds get more than they can handle.

Mesrine: Killer Instinct

Jacques Mesrine, a loyal son and dedicated soldier, is back home and living with his parents after serving in the Algerian War. Soon he is seduced by the neon glamour of sixties Paris and the easy money it presents. Mentored by Guido, Mesrine turns his back on middle class law-abiding and soon moves swiftly up the criminal ladder.

The Aura

A quiet, epileptic taxidermist plans the perfect crime. All he needs is the right opportunity. An accident, perhaps…

Angels with Dirty Faces

Childhood chums Rocky Sullivan and Jerry Connelly grow up on opposite sides of the fence: Rocky matures into a prominent gangster, while Jerry becomes a priest, tending to the needs of his old tenement neighborhood.

The Cooler

Bernie works at a Las Vegas casino, where he uses his innate ability to bring about misfortune in those around him to jinx gamblers into losing. His imposing boss, Shelly Kaplow, is happy with the arrangement. But Bernie finds unexpected happiness when he begins dating attractive waitress Natalie Belisario.

Intacto

An enigmatic tale of four people whose lives are intertwined by destiny are subject to the laws of fate. They discover that luck is something they cannot afford to be without as they gamble with the highest stakes possible in a deadly game from which only one of them will emerge intact.

Sino

Mauro, a young man from a poor neighborhood who is used to bad company, visits the casino for the first time. A stroke of luck will change his life and lead him to bet on bad decisions.

Croupier

Jack Manfred is an aspiring writer who to make ends meet, takes a job as a croupier. Jack remains an observer, knowing that everything in life is a gamble and that gamblers are born to lose. Inevitably, he gets sucked into the world of the casino which takes its toll on his relationships and the novel he is writing.

The Long Good Friday

In the late 1970s, Cockney crime boss Harold Shand, a gangster trying to become a legitimate property mogul, has big plans to get the American Mafia to bankroll his transformation of a derelict area of London into the possible venue for a future Olympic Games. However, a series of bombings targets his empire on the very weekend the Americans are in town. Shand is convinced there is a traitor in his organization, and sets out to eliminate the rat in typically ruthless fashion.

Hold That Ghost

Two bumbling service station attendants are left as the sole beneficiaries in a gangster's will. Their trip to claim their fortune is sidetracked when they are stranded in a haunted house along with several other strangers.

Bordertown

An ambitious Mexican-American gets mixed up with the neurotic wife of his casino boss.

A Night in Casablanca

The Marx Brothers are employed at a hotel in postwar Casablanca, where a ring of Nazis is trying to recover a cache of stolen treasure.

Bob le Flambeur

In Paris, Bob Montagne is practically synonymous with gambling -- and winning. He is kind, classy and well-liked by virtually everyone in town, including police inspector Ledru. However, when Bob's luck turns sour, he begins to lose friends and makes the most desperate gamble of his life: to rob the Deauville casino during Grand Prix weekend, when the vaults are full. Unfortunately, Bob soon learns that the game is rigged and the cops are on to him.

Desert Fury

The daughter of a Nevada casino owner gets involved with a racketeer, despite everyone's efforts to separate them.

The Last Casino

A University teacher finds three bright students and decides to teach them how to count cards to make lots of money. As they learn how to play the casinos, things get tricky when the debt owing teacher informs them that their front man wants restitution for loses in about a weeks time. The three students decide to hit all the major casinos in Ontario and Quebec until discovered.

Rover Dangerfield

Rover, a street-smart dog owned by a Las Vegas showgirl is dumped off Hoover Dam by the showgirl's boyfriend. Rather than drowning, Rover winds up in your basic idyllic farm in a classic city-boy-in-country shtick.

Atlantic City

In a corrupt city, a small-time gangster and the estranged wife of a pot dealer find themselves thrown together in an escapade of love, money, drugs and danger.

4 for Texas

In the 1870s, two rival businessmen, Zack Thomas and Joe Jarrett, on a stagecoach heading to Galveston, Texas, must pull together to protect $100,000 from an outlaw named Matson. Once in Galveston, however, their rivalry continues, as Thomas joins up with Elya Carlson and Jarret with Maxine Richter. But Matson is still on the loose, and a scheming banker threatens both Thomas and Jarrett.

Leprechaun 3

It was a normal night in Las Vegas, Nevada, all the lights were flashing brightly, until a man with one hand, one eye, and one leg walks into a pawn shop with a statue of a hideous looking Leprechaun. The owner claims it's a good luck charm. The statue also wore a medallion around it's neck. The careless pawn shop owner took off the medallion setting the Leprechaun free...

The Casino Job

Barry Kaylin is living the dream. Not yet 40, he owns four Las Vegas casinos and lives the life of the bachelor to the fullest. One night, while meeting with two potential business associates, he hires five local dancers to flirt and lounge around his mansion and lagoon pool.

Alex & Emma

Writer Alex Sheldon must finish his novel within a month. If he doesn't, he won't get paid. And, if that happens, angry Mafia types to whom he owes money will come looking for him. In order to expedite things, Alex hires typist Emma Dinsmore and begins dictating his novel. The book is about a doomed love affair between a character similar to Alex and a character named Polina Delacroix. But, as Alex falls for Emma, his work takes a different turn.

Blind Fury

A blind Vietnam vet, trained as a swordfighter, comes to America and helps to rescue the son of a fellow soldier.

Echelon Conspiracy

Mysterious cell phone messages promise a young American engineer untold wealth - then make him the target of a deadly international plot. Dangerous security operatives chase the engineer across the globe, while a powerful government official pursues a mysterious agenda that threatens the stability of the entire world.

The Collector

A romantic comedy set in the world of gambling, debt collecting and professional boxing. Laura is an unlucky gambler with a huge debt, she crosses paths with Claus, a former boxer who now makes a living as a debt collector. Laura is cheating, scamming, and lying and eventually life catches up with her. Claus is trying to regain his self respect and start anew. Together, they make an awkward but very charming couple on the verge of love. It is a story about trust, friendship, new beginnings, getting a second chance and doing the right thing.

My Blueberry Nights

Elizabeth has just been through a particularly nasty breakup, and now she's ready to leave her friends and memories behind as she chases her dreams across the country. In order to support herself on her journey, Elizabeth picks up a series of waitress jobs along the way. As Elizabeth crosses paths with a series of lost souls whose yearnings are even greater than her own, their emotional turmoil ultimately helps her gain a greater understanding of her own problems...

Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold

When fellow operatives and friends disappear during a mission in Hong Kong, Cleopatra Jones comes to help. She discovers the disappearance involves The Dragon Lady, a feared lipstick lesbian who runs a casino and the local drug trade.

The Driver

The Driver specializes in driving getaway cars for robberies. His exceptional talent has prevented him from being caught yet. After another successful flight from the police a self-assured detective makes it his primary goal to catch the Driver. He promises pardons to a gang if they help to convict him in a set-up robbery. The Driver seeks help from The Player to mislead the detective.

Reindeer Games

After assuming his dead cellmate's identity to get with his girlfriend, an ex-con finds himself the reluctant participant in a casino heist.

The Spider Woman

Sherlock Holmes investigates a series of so-called "pajama suicides". He knows the female villain behind them is as cunning as Moriarty and as venomous as a spider. Based on "The Sign of Four" and the short stories "The Dying Detective", "The Final Problem", "The Speckled Band" and "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot".

Gilda

A gambler discovers an old flame while in Argentina, but she's married to his new boss.