He eventually doubles the mob's take and finally changes the very rules of how the casinos are run. In charge of four casinos, he insures that the money keeps coming in and looks the other way as the skim flows out the back, while keeping a canny eye on the quick hands of every cheat, hustler and blackjack dealer in the place. Sam 'Ace' Rothstein (Robert De Niro), the consummate bookie who could change the odds merely by placing a bet, has come up through the ranks of the Midwestern mob to be picked by the bosses to front their entree into Vegas.