The Hustler

The Hustler is often ranked amongst the greatest films ever made, and is often also flagged as being Paul Newman's definitive performance and the role that truly made him a screen icon. It also features on-the-ball performances from Jackie Gleason, Piper Laurie and George C. Scott. All four leads in the film were nominated for Academy Awards for their work here, and the film overall was nominated for 9 Oscars, winning one for Art Direction and another for cinematography.

'Fast' Eddie Felson is a pool shark. He pretends to be a travelling salesman but actually makes his money hustling barflies - tricking them into playing against him for money, and subsequently cleaning up. Eddie has a real skill when it comes to pool games, and he seeks to prove himself to be the best when renowned pool player Minnesota Fats (Gleason) comes to town. The two duke it out in a marathon 40-hour session, with alcohol and sleep deprivation eventually getting the better of Eddie. Eddie becomes obsessed with beating Fats... he falls in love with a lonely drunk (Piper Laurie) and recieves some financial backing from the depraved and soulless Bert (George C. Scott), and slowly grows colder as his need to beat Fats consumes his soul.

What starts as an engaging and entertaining film about pool becomes something substantially more. Newman's portrayal of the cocky and charming hustler gradually gives way to the dirt underneath. It becomes clear that he is a 'born loser' - no matter how much Eddie wins he will never really be a 'winner', his obsessive nature ensures this and the ways in which he sabotages any other success that comes his way (including the possibility of true love) paves the way for one of the most tragic endings in 60s filmmaking. The rest of the cast is similarly in tune with the text, Laurie's pathological loner hits all the right marks and Gleason brings presence to a role that requires exactly that. George C. Scott in particular is remarkable as the cold-hearted Bert, reminding me just what a great and underrated actor he was.

The film wanes a little in the middle, but it's a neccessary dip that shows us Eddie's gradual consumption by obsession. The film has some great black and white cinematography, and the direction is beauiful... we get lurid, jazzy montages with scenes half dissolved over one another, conveying the passing of time with a bourbon-soaked lackadaisical quality perfectly in tone with the film's themes of greed and glory. The Hustler offers a sleazy and completely identifiable depiction of greed, a small-scale story that shows us the nature of an unhealthy lust for winning in a way that's relevant to our own everyday lives. It shows us what it means to be a 'winner' or a 'loser'. Newman's 'Fast' Eddie Nelson doesn't know when to quit. The price he pays is too high, but he learns it the hard way.

DIRECTOR: Robert Rossen
WRITER/SOURCE: Screenplay by Robert Rossen and Sidney Carroll, based on the book by Walter Tevis.
KEY ACTORS: Paul Newman, Piper Laurie, Jackie Gleason, George C. Scott, Michael Constantine, Vincent Gardenia

RELATED TEXTS:
- The 1959 novel The Hustler, by Walter Tevis. Tevis continued the story of Eddie Nelson in a sequel novel, The Colour of Money, in 1984.
- Martin Scorsese adapted The Colour of Money into a film 1986, with Paul Newman reprising his role and teaming up with Tom Cruise.
- The Hustler also inspired the Steve McQueen vehicle The Cincinatti Kid, which is basically a retread of the same story but with cards instead of pool. The modern card-playing film Shade also echoes themes from The Hustler.
- Other films about pool or hustling include The Sting, California Split, Stickmen, Poolhall Junkies, White Men Can't Jump, The Baltimore Bullet and The Baron and the Kid.

AWARDS
Academy Awards - won Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography. Also nominated for Best Actor (Paul Newman), Best Supporting Actor (Jackie Gleason), Best Supporting Actor (George C. Scott), Best Supporting Actress (Piper Laurie), Best Director, Best Writing and Best Film.
BAFTAs - won Best Film and Best Foreign Actor (Newman).
Golden Globes - nominated Best Actor - Drama (Paul Newman), Best Supporting Actor (Jackie Gleason) and Best Supporting Actor (George C. Scott)