After Goodfellas put the mob in the mainstream and paved the way for a generation of auteurs indebted to him, Martin Scorsese returned with Casino. The movie, which stars Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, lays bare Vegas’s past ties to organized crime while showing how the city reinvented itself as gambling corporations took over.

The film was a box office smash, but it didn’t win much critical acclaim. Critics criticized the movie’s melodramatic story and hammy acting, while others complained about its depiction of violence and sexually explicit scenes.

Casino was a risky gamble for Universal, which invested a lot of money in the picture. But the healthy return on investment helped set the stage for a decade of megahits that included Raging Bull and The Wolf of Wall Street.

Today, casinos are carefully designed to keep people playing for as long as possible. They are filled with dazzling lights, the sound of slot machines, and a buzzing atmosphere that makes players feel like they are in on a secret. They also have a variety of scents that waft through the ventilation systems to make people comfortable. These scented oils are meant to create a manufactured feeling of bliss that keeps them coming back for more.

But beneath the glitter and glitz, casinos are rigged to slowly bleed their patrons of their hard-earned cash. For years mathematically inclined minds have tried to turn the tables, using probability and game theory to beat the house edge. But the odds are always against you. Unless you’re a genius, the best strategy is to avoid gambling altogether.