House of Games, released in 1987, marks playwright, filmmaker, and author David Mamet’s foray into movie direction. It is a neo-noir hidden gem with a twisted plot, a series of twists, and a twisted ending that would make its way onto the best movies list of numerous critics.

The cast features Joe Mantegna and Lindsay Crouse in the lead, with ample support from a competent supporting cast that includes J. T. Walsh, Steven Goldstein, and Ricky Jay. House of Games is a dark tale full of con games, a series of con games, and con games within con games.

Lindsay Crouse plays Dr. Margaret Ford, one of the most interesting characters to ever appear on screen. Her professional attire and polished demeanor add more realism to the role. Margaret Ford is a successful psychiatrist and has garnered a reputation with a popular published book.

While on the outside she seems composed, Ford is a deeply flawed person with dark propensities that she suppresses by burying herself in her work. When her patients berate her and complain about the lack of progress in fixing their own problems, Ford takes their insults seriously and blames herself. Besides work, she has almost no life except for an occasional dinner or lunch with an older colleague.

One day, in a session with one of her patients, an addicted gambler named Billy Hahn (Steven Goldstein) tells her that he is contemplating suicide because he owes money to Mike, a dangerous criminal. Ford manages to take possession of Mike’s gun and decides to meet Mike and persuade him to forgive Hahn’s debt.

Ford goes to a shady pool bar named “House of Games” to find Mike. While the lone bartender at the seemingly empty establishment is not initially forthcoming, when Margaret asks to see Mike, he complies and goes to a backroom of the bar.

After a few moments, an enigmatic man (Joe Mantegna), attired in a pressed suit and a heavy Italian accent, walks out. He identifies as Mike. He is rude and arrogant, but Margaret stands up to his passive-aggressive tone and assertively asks him to forgive the $25,000 that her patient Billy owes him. The open door of the backroom reveals that a poker game is in progress inside.

Mike produces his own pocket ledger, which shows that Billy’s debt is $800 and not the $25,000 that Billy claimed. While Margaret Ford can easily pay off the debt and save her patient from further trouble, Mike makes a strange proposal to her that arouses her curiosity, and she complies with it.

Mike tells her that he is playing poker against an expert. However, Mike convinces Margaret that he has spotted his opponent’s ‘tell,’ an unconscious gesture the latter makes when he is bluffing. All Margaret must do is sit with Mike and observe the game. Then, when Mike steps out for a bio break and returns later in the game, Margaret must inform Mike whether or not his opponent made the gesture.

When she notices the gesture and informs Mike, he is reluctant to call the bluff. Impulsively, Margaret steps in and calls the bluff herself. Shockingly, she realizes that Mike’s opponent has the better cards. The belligerent gambler pulls out a gun and demands immediate payment of the $6,000 he is owed.

An observant Margaret calls out the fake threat, pointing out that the gun he is holding is a squirt gun. At this point, Mike confesses that he, his opponent, and another elderly gambler are part of a team of unscrupulous con men who prey upon vulnerable, unsuspecting people.

Though she is initially furious, she cannot help the morbid curiosity that overpowers her emotions. As she leaves for the night, she thanks Mike for a wonderful evening. Later, while at dinner with her colleague and confidant, the latter suggests that Margaret is overworked and that she must do something that she enjoys. Using this as an excuse, Margaret meets Mike again.

This time, Mike takes her for a ‘demonstration’ of one of his con games to a bank. Here he manages to win a man’s trust but just stops short of extorting the man’s money and leaves with Margaret. He then bids her farewell, but Margaret cannot leave, as she is bound by many of her own dark and overpowering motivations. First, she wants to do a character study of Mike for her own intellectual curiosity. Second, she wants to learn some of Mike’s modus operandi. Finally, she is also physically attracted to Mike. She admits only her first motivation, but Mike, being the master of reading people, is well aware of all her motivations.

He takes her to a hotel, plays another con game to acquire a room, and seduces her. Margaret now accompanies Mike and a couple of his accomplices to a bigger con game, with a bigger stake and fraught with danger. Soon, she finds herself in a heist that implicates her and Mike’s gang in an accidental murder.

Can Margaret save herself? Will Mike assist her? Can the gang get away from this predicament?

“House of Games” goes beyond a riveting thriller with an unusual plot. It is Mamet’s commentary on flawed human nature. It also asks the question of whether one can get to know oneself and come to terms with his or her own deviousness, even by taking an unethical path.

Its climax and ultimate ending are devilish and unique.