On the Set of Ace in the Hole
March 05, 2012
Film Info
- United States
- 1951
- 111 minutes
- Black and White
- 1.33:1
- English
- Spine #396
One of the most scathing indictments of American culture ever produced by a Hollywood filmmaker, Billy Wilder’s Ace in the Hole is legendary for both its cutting social critique and its status as a hard-to-find cult classic. Kirk Douglas gives the fiercest performance of his career as Chuck Tatum, an amoral newspaper reporter caught in dead-end Albuquerque who happens upon the story of a lifetime—and will do anything to ensure he gets the scoop. Wilder’s follow-up to Sunset Boulevard is an even darker vision, a no-holds-barred exposé that anticipated the rise of the American media circus.
Cast
| Chuck Tatum | Kirk Douglas |
| Lorraine Minosa | Jan Sterling |
| Herbie Cook | Bob Arthur |
| Jacob Q. Boot | Porter Hall |
| Mr. Federber | Frank Cady |
| Leo Minosa | Richard Benedict |
| Sheriff Kretzer | Ray Teal |
| Smollett | Frank Jaquet |
Credits
| Director | Billy Wilder |
| Screenplay | Billy Wilder, Lesser Samuels and Walter Newman |
| Associate producer | William Schorr |
| Cinematography | Charles B. Lang and Jr. |
| Editorial supervision | Doane Harrison |
| Music | Hugo Friedhofer |
| Art direction | Hal Pereira and Earl Hedrick |
| Editing | Arthur Schmidt |
| Costumes | Edith Head |
Disc Features
SPECIAL EDITION DOUBLE-DISC SET:
- New, restored high-definition digital transfer
- Audio commentary by film scholar Neil Sinyard
- Portrait of a “60% Perfect Man”: Billy Wilder, a 1980 documentary featuring in-depth interviews with Wilder by film critic Michel Ciment
- A 1984 interview with Kirk Douglas by filmmaker and film scholar Michael Thomas
- Excerpts from a 1986 appearance by Wilder at the American Film Institute
- Excerpts from an audio interview with coscreenwriter Walter Newman
- New video afterword by filmmaker Spike Lee
- Stills gallery
- Theatrical trailer
- PLUS: A booklet featuring new essays by film critic Molly Haskell and filmmaker Guy Maddin
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