The Seduction of Gina

There aren't many TV movies about addiction issues besides drugs these days. Guess the casinos won't like this type of movie warning people about gambing addiction. Valerie Bertinelli does a great job as a bored San Francisco wife of a young doctor who starts taking trips to Tahoe to gamble and things get out of control. It's eye opening and fascinating. Not dated at all.

The Seduction of Gina is at its strongest in delivering a step-by-step tour of how gambling can go from an innocent betting pool win at the local bar to the complete unraveling of a life. At first, Gina (Valerie Bertinelli) lands on her feet, occasionally narrowly avoiding disaster. There's often a sense of relief, like "Well, that wasn't good, but she can recover." Eventually the small losses turn into big losses, and big losses need big lies to keep quiet.

Gina's problems didn't start in the casino. She's spontaneous, endearing, bubbly, and maybe a tad impulsive. As such, while everyone loves having her around no one takes her particularly seriously. Her father and brother talk about the stock market and leave her out, and when she asks, it elicits eyerolls and a casual dismissal. Her husband quickly shoots down any plans she makes for them to spend time together because his medical internship is too important and necessitates very long hours. Her one main college friend is too busy chasing guys and studying to hang out more. It seems everyone around Gina is "going somewhere" and she's just the plucky sidekick or supportive wife.

Her husband, in fact, has his own addiction in the form of his work. It's obvious his medical internship is very demanding, yet it's also his ready-made excuse to get out of anything. Gina repeatedly attempts to make plans for them and asks if he can schedule a day off, but he doesn't really try. Work is just more important to him. It's easy to blame Gina for their marriage falling apart - she's an addict, a degenerate. On the other hand, he's pursuing the noble path of becoming a doctor.

Some may be hoping for a grittier rock bottom, like Gina ending up on the streets as a prostitute or something equally tragic, but it stops short of going full-on exploitation. I'm glad it didn't go there because it keeps her more relatable. Sometimes films like this want to revel in the grime, and the viewer assuages themself with the thought that, "Well, I'm not waking up face down in the gutter, so I don't have a problem." Gina is able to contain most of the desperation and despair beneath a mostly composed veneer, even as her world is crashing down all around her - a reminder that some addictions can't be seen at just a glance.

This film is probably more relevant today than when it was made given that gambling is now more available than ever. Gina wouldn't even need to drive three hours up highway 50 from San Francisco to South Lake Tahoe to get her fix. She could be in a card room in less than an hour these days. She could just go online.

There's two more quick things to say about this great little film. The first is an awesome synth soundtrack by Eddie Van Halen (who Bertinelli was dating at the time), and the second is all the early-1980s scenes of San Francisco, with old icons like Enrico's Coffee, Union Square and Chinatown.

This film provides an excellent example of how the addiction of compulsive/pathological gambling begins. The film provided true to life situations that are common and could lead a person to become addicted to gambling. The story line provided true to life consequences of compulsive gambling. This film went beyond entertainment. A good choice for those who want to learn about the disease of compulsive gambling. What the film did not address was how to treat the problem of compulsive gambling.

Valerie Bertinelli is young, married and bored. Her husband is working monster hours doing his medical internship, and has little time for her. On a whim, she goes up to Lake Tahoe with a couple of college friends. Finding excitement at the tables, she soon gets in over her head in gambling debts and spins lie after lie to her husband and family as she depletes her savings and trust........and in a fit of despair and hopelessness, beds a casino exec. who she befriended. This is a made for tv movie, so don't expect major character development, and yes it's a bit convenient. Overall,though it's an easy watch if you like Valerie Bertinelli. If you don't, then you probably wouldn't be watching it to begin with.

When Eddie Van Halen came to visit his then young bride on set (1985) I knew I was lucky to get cast in this movie. One of my scenes was shot at the old Sagebrush Cantina in Culver City. A crowded gambling bar where Valerie's character spirals deeper into her gambling addiction. In the later years this TV movie was used to educate real gamblers on the perils of addiction. How time flies.