Running Out Of Luck

Bernie Lootz has made a living changing the good luck of any gambler who comes to the Las Vegas casino where he works. Bernie (William H. Macy) is the cooler at the Shangri-La hotel casino. When hotel manager Shelly Kaplow (Alec Baldwin) calls on Bernie, Bernie almost always succeeds in bringing the gambler's good luck to an end. In fact, Bernie does everything he can to surround himself with bad luck. Before he hits the floor, Bernie goes through a coffee ritual with Doris (Ellen Greene), who's a waitress at the Shangri-La bar. Bernie asks for coffee with cream, but the creamer is always empty or nearly empty.

Bernie, though, is one week away from retirement, and that's something Shelly doesn't want. Bernie owed Shelly a debt, and his retirement will mean that the debt is paid. Shelly makes a deal with floor waitress Natalie Belisario (Maria Bello) where she pretends to become Bernie's girlfriend. The plan works a little too well, as Natalie truly becomes attracted to Bernie, and he to her. When they become an item, everybody starts winning. Meanwhile, Bernie's son, Mikey (Shawn Hatosy) and his girlfriend Charlene (Estella Warren) show up with the intention of running a scam at the Shangri-La. Mikey and Charlene get caught, and all three suffer consequences. Bernie, unaware that Mikey and Charlene are scamming the hotel, promises to make good on their debt to Shelly. That's the kind of news Shelly wants to hear.

However, the world where Bernie, Shelly, and the rest of the Shangri-La staff work is old. The casino, though, gets a new owner in Larry Sokolov (Ron Livingston), who brings new ideas to the casino. Shelly balks at new ideas, for he thinks business as usual is just fine. That includes handling cheaters personally and discretely. Larry insists things will change, whether Shelly's on board with the changes or not. Larry intends on tearing down the old Shangri-La and building a new one that includes an amusement park. He also has a hot young singer named Johnny Capella (Joey Fatone), who lands a job at the Shangri-La lounge after Buddy Stafford (Paul Sorvino), a longtime fixture there, dies. Larry's plans for the new Shangri-La also don't include Bernie, whom he considers an ancient way of changing luck. Larry makes it clear that he still loves the concept of Las Vegas as Sin City. He just wants people of all ages to have fun partaking in sin.

"The Cooler" is a film that combines film noir and mystery in an engrossing way. There is no escape from the Las Vegas life for at least one of its characters. Director and co-writer Wayne Kramer never says who's responsible for the film's climactic acts. It has to be one of two people, and arguments can be made for and against either of them. Kramer never makes it clear who has luck on their side, and who doesn't until the end. He plays his cinematic hand well, with an abundance of intelligence and humor. I especially like the scene where Bernie gets his bad luck back at a most opportune time. Kramer also shows that the casino management can be just as superstitious as the people who come to win. Shelly has Bernie as his cooler, while Larry wants music playing through the gambling areas that has a subliminal message urging patrons to lose. The characters are the sort we've seen before, but Kramer does bring a different sort of insight of Las Vegas.

Macy, who has done a number of outstanding supporting roles, steps into the title role well. Bernie Lootz lives the life of a loser. He may wear a suit while on duty, but the suit doesn't look sharp on him. He accepts that his bad luck is really good luck, yet he's tired of his routines. He longs for things to go right, which, in part, draws him to Natalie. He and Bello, in a nice supporting role, do have chemistry. Baldwin seems even more superstitious than Bernie as Shelly, who loves the place he's managed for years. Yet, he's the sort of guy, though, who will teach any cheater a hard and private lesson. He's also insecure about what the future will bring as he tries to keep as many pieces of the old Shangri-La as possible. The performance ranks among Baldwin's best. Livingston, best known for his work in "Band Of Brothers" and "Office Space," has an understated effectiveness to Larry. Like Shelly, he is tough, but his toughness comes more from words than actions. He is there to try and get Shelly on board with the new Shangri-La. Larry, though, is not really interested in Shelly's living in the past.

Ultimately, neither is Bernie. Shangri-La is a land where life can be prolonged, but it can't be prolonged eternally. He's done his job, and he's done his time. When Natalie becomes a bigger part of his life, Bernie longs for a life where he's not a cooler, but where he is cool. "The Cooler" tells the tale of the Las Vegas of the past meeting the Las Vegas of the future. The Shangri-La is an establishment that lives in the Las Vegas of a generation ago. A new owner decides it's time for a facelift, and a new way for the house to make sure they win a lot more than they lose. Bernie Lootz looks and feels like a dinosaur, and realizes that he is one in the eyes of a younger generation of casino owners. Bernie's about to become history in Las Vegas, but he's not ready to become a part of history.