MovieChat Forums > Ocean's Thirteen (2007) Discussion > Can someone explain Reuben's quote "the ...

Can someone explain Reuben's quote "the moment you become embarrassed?"

posted 9 years ago by armenianmovieman
3 replies | jump to latest

I love these movies and have seen them a bunch of times, but there's a couple of quotes throughout the movies I still don't get... (Like in Ocean's 12 where Rusty asks about Miller's Crossing... perhaps because I've yet to see Miller's Crossing but still...)

Reuben's quote in the end:

"The moment you become embarrassed of who you are, you lose yourself. I changed my house, the way I dressed, the way I ate - for what? For nothing."

I still can't wrap my head around what it means and why Reuben says it...

Was he ashamed he lost the hotel? Did Reuben really change his lifestyle because of the hotel deal he was in? i.e. The risky deal with Bank was his attempt to stay relevant?

Can someone explain this quote in general and what Reuben means by it?

Thank you so much for answering this odd question.

[–] manubhatt3 9 years ago

I think he is, in general, referring to his lifestyle. May be he came from a very humble background. Remember, in a very early scene, he says to Ocean that if a top end restaurant was full, seats were arranged for him because he was so reputed in town.

[–] ruffian82 9 years ago

Also, remember how worried he is in the beginning about seeming obsolete, old, not needed anymore?

In the scene on the roof with Bank at the beginning, Reuben has to sign that paper.

He came like a lamb to the slaughter, and he was freshly dressed in a new suit and different glasses.

But he has always had his own style, established in the way back days, and that's who he is!

[–] tbeller80 8 years ago

Pretty much this. He was a major player in Vegas for decades and was worried about being forgotten or obsolete which is why he went into business with Bank to build a new hotel and get his name back up there. Somewhere in those years he altered his lifestyle to keep up some kind of image that wasn't him.