Atlantic City

Atlantic City is a crime drama set in the faded New Jersey resort town of the same name. Lou, an aging small-time criminal, scrapes by on betting and is supported by the widow of his former boss. He lives in the same building as Sally, a waitress who works at a casino restaurant and is training to become a croupier. When Sally's estranged husband Dave turns up with stolen drugs and plans to sell them, Lou gets drawn into a scheme that puts the two of them in the path of the drug's owners. The arrangement promises Lou a way out of his stagnation and brings him closer to Sally, though both understand their situation cannot last.

Louis Malle directed the film, the tenth of the thirteen features he made, between Pretty Baby and My Dinner with Andre. John Guare wrote the screenplay, and Burt Lancaster and Susan Sarandon lead a credited cast of thirty-three as Lou and Sally, with Kate Reid, Michel Piccoli, Hollis McLaren and Robert Joy in supporting roles. The production brought together Canadian, French and American companies.

Made for about seven million dollars, Atlantic City took roughly thirteen million worldwide. It holds a 7.3 rating on IMDb from around twenty thousand votes and a 6.8 on TMDB from just over three hundred. The critics' score of 8.6 from thirty-seven reviews is noticeably higher than either audience figure, suggesting professional viewers responded to it more strongly than the general public did.