Overview
A gambler's desperate choices lead him into a deadly game of survival.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- brooding
- smoky
- intimate
- late night cinephile viewing
- cassavetes retrospective
What critics said
Critics generally regard it as an unconventional, actor-driven crime film whose individualistic Cassavetes style and emotional intimacy have sustained a cult following despite loose dramatic structure.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Vitelli's relationships with dancers, the singer Mr. Sophistication, and the dancer's mother receive sustained attention alongside the mob plot.
After losing $23,000, Cosmo is pressured to kill a Chinese bookie to erase his gambling debt.
The mob-hit premise repeatedly yields to club performances, backstage relationships, and improvisatory character exchanges.
The film contrasts double-crossing gamblers and murderous insincerity with sweetness, friendship, and love around Vitelli's club.
Films like The Killing of a Chinese Bookie, and why
Mean Streets
shared art-film approach to criminality, morally compromised protagonists, and tense urban alienation
Mikey and Nicky
shared neo-noir atmosphere, criminal coercion, fatalism, and psychologically intimate character focus
Husbands
shared crime narrative filtered through improvisatory performances, damaged masculinity, and bleakly humane friendship
The Friends of Eddie Coyle
shared stripped-down gangster world, existential pressure, and stylized American independent filmmaking
Movie Details
- Director
- John Cassavetes
- Release Date
- 1976-02-15
- Runtime
- 135 min
- Rating
- 7.0 / 10 (306)
Cast
- Ben Gazzara
- Timothy Carey
- Seymour Cassel
- Robert Phillips
- Morgan Woodward
- Al Ruban
- Azizi Johari
- Haji
- Alice Friedland
- Derna Wylde
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- HBO Max Amazon Channel, Criterion Channel, HBO Max
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Killing of a Chinese Bookie about?
- A debt-ridden Los Angeles strip-club owner is coerced into a mob killing, forcing his fragile nightlife community into the path of violence.
- What is The Killing of a Chinese Bookie like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Killing of a Chinese Bookie as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Killing of a Chinese Bookie violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in The Killing of a Chinese Bookie as moderate.
- What did critics think of The Killing of a Chinese Bookie?
- Critics generally regard it as an unconventional, actor-driven crime film whose individualistic Cassavetes style and emotional intimacy have sustained a cult following despite loose dramatic structure.
- Which films are like The Killing of a Chinese Bookie?
- Films with a similar feel include Mean Streets, Mikey and Nicky, Husbands, and The Friends of Eddie Coyle.
- How long is The Killing of a Chinese Bookie?
- The Killing of a Chinese Bookie runs 135 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Killing of a Chinese Bookie?
- In United States, The Killing of a Chinese Bookie streams on HBO Max Amazon Channel, Criterion Channel, HBO Max.
