The Movie
The legendary Paul Newman stars as The Hustler "Fast Eddie" Felson, the role that would win him an Academy Award... although not until 25 years later and the Martin Scorsese-directed sequel The Color of Money. The game is pool and Fast Eddie might just have more talent than anyone who has ever picked up a cue. What he lacks is character, as he learns the hard way after a sound thrashing by Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason), the best stick in the country.
Eddie loses everything and starts his life over again, with the love of a troubled woman (Piper Laurie), but it takes a bunch of thugs breaking his thumbs (an occupational hazard) for him to learn that there's more to life than pool. With a new manager (George C. Scott) and a new attitude, soon enough he sets his sights on a rematch wit the fat man.
The Hustler is only incidentally about pool, it's more about one man's transformation, tempering his enthusiasm and frustration with a dose of hard-won humanity.
The Picture
Working form a solid black-and-white Cinemascope master, The Hustler shows excellent shadow detail and nuanced blacks throughout. The weave of the suits, sportcoats and so on are some of the real standouts, although these patterns can lead to some unwanted moiré. Other little details such as pores are plainly evident, and in one scene Piper Laurie's tear glistens like it has its own spotlight. Subtleties of focus are maintained within the 2.35:1 frame, as are the slight differences between the on-set and on-location photography.
The Sound
The 5.1-channel remix is quite good for a film as old as this. The P.A. system in a bus station surrounds us, as does all of the activity at a bustling hotel, or a party with a live band. There's also pouring rain in the rears in one scene, but also tiny moments such as footsteps or other odd, credible, you-are-there noises. The true potential of the lossless DTS-HD Master Audio format is not realized here, owing to the quality ceiling of the original recordings, but this is still a terrific showing.
The Extras
Digi-book-type repackaging of classic movies tends to emphasize the beauty of the little hardcover book holding the disc with precious little new video content, so I was pleasantly surprised by the three brand-new HD additions to The Hustler. "Paul Newman at Fox" is a 27-minute look at his movies at this studio, but also at the man himself. A twelve-minute Jackie Gleason featurette also taught me a lot about The Great One, and the 19-minute segment built upon a 1984 audio interview with Walter Tevis, author of The Hustler, is extremely well-produced.
From here, the content has been ported from DVDs past, including the excellent 2007 two-disc Collector's Edition, with lots of the original talent returning to share their thoughts. One recommended treat is the audio commentary with star Paul Newman, director/producer/co-writer Robert Rossen's daughter Carol, film editor Dede Allen, supporting player Stefan Gierasch, assistant director Ulu Grosbard, critic Richard Schickel and film historian Jeff Young, all hosted by historian Stuart Galbraith. A full listing can be found below.
Final Thoughts
Several of the informed voices in the extras suggest that no one today would dare film The Hustler as long and unhurried as Robert Rossen's now-classic study of the charismatic pool shark, and they are probably right. The movie, and now this Blu-ray, give us a hefty slice of bygone cinema. It's a winner, and that's no hustle.
Product Details
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