movie night: Ace in the Hole

adrianne and i went to film forum last night to see a special screening of Ace in the Hole. this is one of my favorite movies by one of my favorite directors, billy wilder. the story centers around a former big-city newspaper-man stuck at a small new mexico paper when he stumbles on a man stuck deep inside an ancient indian cliff dwelling. knowing how to spin a human-interest story able to hook readers, chuck tatum, played by kirk douglas, stages all the elements of the man’s rescue for maximum drama. the movie takes a cynical look at media exploitation and the schadenfreude of the american public. it even makes you question the motivation of random acts of kindness. kirk douglas is fantastic as the ambitious ringleader, i hesitate to say journalist, with a sharp mind and sharper tongue. billy wilder’s direction, as always, is compact and straight-forward. it’s a rarely recognized gem of the director’s extensive filmography. it's not available on netflix so you may have to work to find this movie, but it's worth it.

image from CinemaCom