The Hustler (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
Paul Newman created a classic antihero with 'Fast' Eddie Felson, a wildly charismatic but heavily flawed man in 'The Hustler' (produced, directed, & co-written by Robert Rossen). A brilliant, if disillusioned small-time pool player from Oakland, California, Eddie has an Achilles' heel ... arrogance. It's just not enough for him to win a match; no, he must force his loser opponent to acknowledge how vastly superior he is. This drama follows Eddie from his 1st major match in New York against national billiards champ Minnesota Fats (a superb Jackie Gleason). Later, at an all-night diner, Eddie meets & falls in love with the crippled Sarah Packard (appealing newcomer Piper Laurie), a sad, alcoholic, would-be writer & part-time prostitute.
He drifts around town, perusing 3rd rate pool hall after pool hall until one fateful night when Eddie picks the wrong man to challenge to pool & the loser's friends corner him; eventually breaking his thumbs. Over time, and after recovering, Eddie falls under the spell of Bert Gordon (the typically solid George C. Scott), a ruthless, greedy, but successful gambler who offers to take Eddie under his wing (for a price) & teach him how to play with the big boys. However, when Sarah joins Eddie & Bert on a fateful trip to Louisville, Kentucky for a high-stakes match with a millionaire billiards addict named Findlay (Murray Hamilton) ... the consequences prove to be tragic. Tragedy wakes Eddie up (figuratively), & he returns to NY for one last match with Minnesota Fats. Drama ensues.
The final pool hall showdown btwn. Eddie & Minnesota Fats is expertly realized; reminding me of a high noon duel that you'd see in a Western shoot-out. The dirty setting, the obsession of the players, the grime, the sweat, the pool skills, the tension, the result ... it all works. This film is not just about the ups & devastating downs of a pool player, it also deals with the floundering inner conflicts of a man who is trying to find his path in life. So the final decision that Eddie makes is pretty fascinating; realizing that the life he'd been leading to that point was self-centered, stagnant, unhealthy, & even inhumane. Along with the classic performances by Paul Newman & Jackie Gleason, 'The Hustler' also features cameos from pool champ Willie Mosconi & boxer Jake LaMotta.
I also appreciate the heavy atmosphere, thanks to the dingy production design & Eugen Schufftan's stark black-&-white camerawork. I just love the way in which the smoky pool rooms were shot & depicted. Having said all of that - even though this is obviously a stellar film on almost all accounts - I did not love it. It's an intense tale of weakness & success and warrants many viewings to appreciate the layers, both visually & performance-wise. But for my cinematic preferences, 'The Hustler' is a bit too cynical, sordid & depressing. Again, that's not a knock on the quality of the film. It just doesn't sit in my wheelhouse as a movie viewer. In 1986, Newman returned to the role of 'Fast' Eddie Nelson in Martin Scorsese's The Color of Money, for which he finally earned an Academy Award.
He drifts around town, perusing 3rd rate pool hall after pool hall until one fateful night when Eddie picks the wrong man to challenge to pool & the loser's friends corner him; eventually breaking his thumbs. Over time, and after recovering, Eddie falls under the spell of Bert Gordon (the typically solid George C. Scott), a ruthless, greedy, but successful gambler who offers to take Eddie under his wing (for a price) & teach him how to play with the big boys. However, when Sarah joins Eddie & Bert on a fateful trip to Louisville, Kentucky for a high-stakes match with a millionaire billiards addict named Findlay (Murray Hamilton) ... the consequences prove to be tragic. Tragedy wakes Eddie up (figuratively), & he returns to NY for one last match with Minnesota Fats. Drama ensues.
The final pool hall showdown btwn. Eddie & Minnesota Fats is expertly realized; reminding me of a high noon duel that you'd see in a Western shoot-out. The dirty setting, the obsession of the players, the grime, the sweat, the pool skills, the tension, the result ... it all works. This film is not just about the ups & devastating downs of a pool player, it also deals with the floundering inner conflicts of a man who is trying to find his path in life. So the final decision that Eddie makes is pretty fascinating; realizing that the life he'd been leading to that point was self-centered, stagnant, unhealthy, & even inhumane. Along with the classic performances by Paul Newman & Jackie Gleason, 'The Hustler' also features cameos from pool champ Willie Mosconi & boxer Jake LaMotta.
I also appreciate the heavy atmosphere, thanks to the dingy production design & Eugen Schufftan's stark black-&-white camerawork. I just love the way in which the smoky pool rooms were shot & depicted. Having said all of that - even though this is obviously a stellar film on almost all accounts - I did not love it. It's an intense tale of weakness & success and warrants many viewings to appreciate the layers, both visually & performance-wise. But for my cinematic preferences, 'The Hustler' is a bit too cynical, sordid & depressing. Again, that's not a knock on the quality of the film. It just doesn't sit in my wheelhouse as a movie viewer. In 1986, Newman returned to the role of 'Fast' Eddie Nelson in Martin Scorsese's The Color of Money, for which he finally earned an Academy Award.