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'''''Rounders''''' (1998) is about the underground world of {{poker}} in {{New York City}} starring {{Matt Damon}} as Mike [=McDermott=] and {{Edward Norton}} as Worm and a bit part for {{John Malkovich}} as the Russian gangster Teddy KGB. This movie has become a cult classic, especially because of the current popularity of Texas Hold 'Em style poker.

The plot involves Edward Norton's character Worm being heavily in debt to gangsters, so how do they decide to pay off their debt? Why playing poker of course.

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!! This movie contains examples of:

* BigApplesauce
* CheatersNeverProsper: Subverted, one of them doesn't want to cheat, they get caught anyway.
* CyclicNationalFascination: This film, along with the invention of the hole-card camera (which made it possible for Poker to truly become a spectator sport) and the rise of online poker sites, is credited with the sudden rise in popularity of Texas Hold 'Em Poker at the start of the 21st century.
* DuelToTheDeath: Strongly implied in the climactic match, though only on Mike's side. If Mike failed to win enough to cover the debt, Gramma was present to make his bones with Teddy's organization - and the most common way to do that was killing someone. He would have ''really'' preferred killing Worm, but was quite content to make his bones with Mike. [[spoiler: But when Teddy lost, he told his mooks to pay Mike off and let him go, leaving a disappointed Gramma to flip a table and stalk off, bones ummade.]]
* EvilDebtCollector: Gramma
* FakeRussian: Teddy KGB, as played by JohnMalkovich.
* FallenOnHardTimesJob: How do you know when a guy's recently been wiped out at the table? He's driving a delivery truck.
* FixingTheGame: Worm just can't help himself. It's like Chronic Cheating Disorder.
* LargeHam: Teddy KGB.
* NoHoldsBarredBeatdown: [[spoiler:Worm and Mike catch one when they get caught cheating in a game against state troopers.]]
* TheObstructiveLoveInterest: Jo, who spends most of her screen time acting cold and distrustful towards Mike.
* OldFriend: The basic relationship between Mike and Worm after Worm is released from prison.
* {{Poker}}: Just in case you hadn't noticed yet, this movie is about poker.
* TheMagicPokerEquation: In the last hand in the game against KGB at the beginning of the film.
* SherlockScan: Mike, when reading the table at his law school professor's round, impressing everyone.
* StockFootage: From the World Series of Poker, specifically the 1988 main event's final hand between Johnny Chan and Erik Seidel. (Chan also makes a cameo.)
* VillainousBreakdown: [[spoiler:Teddy [=KGB=] really freaks out after experiencing a bad beat and losing the film's climactic poker match to Mike. Thankfully, he's honorable enough to recognize that he lost fair and square and he gives Mike his winnings rather than ordering his goons to beat Mike to a pulp.]]
* WeDoNotKnowEachOther: Mike and Worm use this trope when they work together at the same poker table several times throughout the movie. [[spoiler:This backfires in a major way during their final game, where Worm gets caught cheating when dealing a winning full house to Mike, thereby pissing off a room full of New York state cops.]]
* WomanScorned: Kind of. Mike's girlfriend Jo leaves him and takes most of their stuff from their cohabitated apartment after she finds out he's been playing cards again.
** It's mentioned that he lost all his money at least once before the start of the movie, so she is somewhat cold and untrusting right from the beginning. When she finally leaves it's mostly her stuff anyway. Still, though, he never gets with her again, and even their final words to each other are uneasy.
* WhatTheHellIsThatAccent: Teddy KGB is ostensibly Russian, but his accent appears to be an entity all its own. [[SoBadItsGood And yet it works.]]
* WorkOffTheDebt
* WorthyOpponent: When Mike beats Teddy KGB in the climactic poker game at the end of the movie, he treats Mike as this.
--> '''KGB:''' "He beat me. Straight up. Pay him. Pay that man his money."
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