House of Games

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House of Games

R,

1987,

1h 41m,

Mystery & Thriller/

Crime/

Drama

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Watchlist

94%

33 Reviews

Tomatometer

79%

5,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

33 Reviews

79%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

After one of her patients threatens suicide, psychiatrist Margaret Ford (Lindsay Crouse) confronts the source of his anxieties, a downtown bookie named Mike (Joe Mantegna). Once she decides that Mike is not a serious threat, however, she herself becomes interested in his world of high-stakes gambling, and makes use of her skills at reading tells, becoming entrenched in his dealings. Things get dangerous, though, when Mike turns out not to be a bookie at all, but a con man.

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Critics Consensus

Galvanized by David Mamet's punchy dialogue and a winding succession of surprises, House of Games is a terse thriller where confidence is currency.

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Jan 1, 2000

4/4

There is a teasing quality to Mamet's presentations that reminds me of a skilled magician, meticulously laying out his cards while telling us a story.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

Jul 28, 2026

Mamet’s wily plot twists and turns while the characters constantly play roles within roles, from the impersonal mask of the psychiatrist pushing her patients... to the gamblers bluffing their way through hands of cards, criminal schemes, and seductions.

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Chance Solem-Pfeifer

Willamette Week

Jun 18, 2026

What follows is a con-man movie that sticks in your guts. Not because of the take or the twists, but rather its pitch-black read on these characters and what they can’t help but reveal through all their trickery.

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Jack E. Wilkinson

United Press International

Jun 8, 2026

Playwright David Mamet makes his directorial debut in this thoughtful, probing psychological study.

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Vera Wylde

Council of Geeks

Oct 18, 2025

Maybe part of the problem is that (Mamet's) roots are in theater... This is something that could actually make for a decent remake... It begs for a stronger stylistic hand in the presentation, and it just doesn't have that.

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Rene Jordan

El Nuevo Herald (Miami)

Jun 14, 2022

It seems incredible, but every piece falls logically into place. At the end you understand the beginning, and you also understand that this is an almost perfect cinematic scam. [Full review in Spanish]

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Abraham S

Mar 9, 2019

Interesting concept and plot, but the acting is not good. I enjoyed the movie, but the more you watch it the worse it holds up over time. The dialogue is watching an episode of Dragnet, where all of the actors appear to be reading their lines.

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Feb 1, 2019

The best thrilling mystery movie ever made!

Jul 31, 2018

Good plot, terrible hippy era dialogue, shallow unrehearsed acting by some of my favorite actors. Disappointed.

Abraham G

Jan 7, 2018

When your husband writes a near flawless screenplay for you and you can't act your way out of a paper bag could be the title for David Mamet's 'House of Games'. Mamet wrote and directed and allowed his wife (at the time), Lindsay Crouse, to lessen a darn good film. Bottom line is Crouse can't act, but Joe Mantegna can. This tense, never uninteresting character study is as good as it can be. Mamet can write the hell out of a movie. It's tense and zigs and zags to the finish. It's about a women who craves to know more about con men. And that's all you should know going in. Final Score: 7.8/10

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George M

Dec 28, 2017

That David Mamet is one of the greatest writers for the stage and film we've seen in the past 30 years is well known. But, in 1987, he was a playwright who dabbled in screenwriting and no one had seen him direct anything not on the stage. Thankfully, Mamet was so in demand that he could make a demand to direct his first film, which debuted 30 years ago this weekend. The movie is called House of Games and Mamet proved that not only was he a master of words, but he could direct the hell out of a movie. House of Games stars Lindsey Crouse, Mamet's then wife, as Margaret Ford, a successful psychiatrist and author who is stuck in a rut. The success of her book has her longing for more excitement in her life, as returning to her routine of seeing patients holds little of anything new for her. Even when one of her patients, an inveterate gambler, pulls a gun and threatens to kill himself, Margaret seems non-plussed. She manages to get him to give her the gun, and then finds that he is on the verge of suicide over a debt he owes to a gambler. https://geeks.media/classic-movie-review-house-of-games?_ga=2.68012625.1126457623.1513947710-953607229.1513947710

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Sep 21, 2017

Incredibly poor acting. Only watch it if you want to enjoy making jokes throughout a la Mystery Science Theater 3000 or Plan 9 From Outer Space. One of the worst movies I've ever seen.

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David Mamet

Director

Lindsay Crouse

Margaret Ford

Joe Mantegna

Mike

Mike Nussbaum

Joey

Lilia Skala

Dr. Littauer

J.T. Walsh

The businessman

House of Games: Official Clip - Margaret Kills Mike

2:05

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House of Games: Official Clip - Poker Game Showdown

1:59

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House of Games: Official Clip - It Was Fate I Found You

2:07

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House of Games: Official Clip - Con at Western Union

1:56

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House of Games: Official Clip - The Missing Briefcase

2:04

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House of Games: Official Clip - A Born Thief

2:03

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House of Games: Official Clip - Mike Teaches About Tells

1:57

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House of Games: Official Clip - Margaret Joins the Sting

2:11

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House of Games: Official Clip - Margaret Can't Be Conned

2:12

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House of Games: Official Clip - The Accidental Shooting

2:08

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Synopsis

After one of her patients threatens suicide, psychiatrist Margaret Ford (Lindsay Crouse) confronts the source of his anxieties, a downtown bookie named Mike (Joe Mantegna). Once she decides that Mike is not a serious threat, however, she herself becomes interested in his world of high-stakes gambling, and makes use of her skills at reading tells, becoming entrenched in his dealings. Things get dangerous, though, when Mike turns out not to be a bookie at all, but a con man.

Director: David Mamet
Producer: Michael Hausman
Screenwriter: Jonathan Katz
Distributor: Orion Pictures, Image Entertainment Inc., MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc.
Production Co: Filmhaus
Rating: R
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 11, 1987, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 16, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $416.5K
Runtime: 1h 41m

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