Turner Classic Movies continues its 28-Film tribute to Hollywood legend Kirk Douglas on Tuesday, September 13, with a line-up of some of the actor's best work, including two must-see critiques of two powerful industries - the news media and Hollywood's film industry.
Ace in the Hole (aka The Big Carnival) is Billy Wilder's unswerving indictment of the media through the tale of an unscrupulous reporter who pulls out all the stops to land a big story.
Vincente Minnelli directs The Bad and the Beautiful, an unglamorous depiction of Hollywood through the rise and fall of a opportunistic producer - an Oscar-nominated role for Douglas.
Ace in the Hole (1951) - 10:00 PM, EST
Kirk Douglas is Chuck Tatum, a big-city reporter who's been fired from nearly every prestigious newspaper across the country. Not for lack of talent, but for lack of ethics. He hatches a plan to settle for a small-time publication until he can catch a big break that will put him back in the big time. After a year covering the ho-hum events for an Albuquerque newspaper, he's just itching for trouble to descend on the town so he can cover it in all its glory - maybe a nice murder, a roaring forest fire...or a cave-in.
When Leo Minosa (Richard Benedict) becomes trapped inside of an ancient burial vault, Chuck spins the tale into publishing gold and creates a media frenzy in the process. How far will he go to keep the story going?
Douglas is at his roughest as Chuck Tatum, even too rough for Douglas himself. He remembers talking it over with Billy Wilder:
"Billy, don't you think I should come on a little softer, a little more charming to make him sympathetic, make the audience care about him?" But he said, "Give it both knees. Right from the beginning." I did. (Douglas 178)
That's exactly who Chuck needs to be in a story of such greed and manipulation. Douglas takes hold in a commanding performance, wielding Wilder's scathing dialogue like a sharp blade.
Leo falls for the mock concern of the charming reporter and is soon calling Chuck his best friend. He's as trapped by the illusions Chuck creates as he is by the fallen rocks around him, and Benedict's sensitive performance as he buys into the charade is heart-breaking. Not everyone is buying what Chuck is selling, however.
Leo's wife, Lorraine (Jan Sterling), who appears grief-stricken in the headlines is anything but sympathetic in reality. She despises Leo and sees his predicament as a head-start to escaping their marriage. Chuck convinces her to stay, if only to cash in when the rest of the media circus comes to town. Love sells, after all. Sterling's brutal performance shows a woman incapable of feeling empathy for another human being, adding another tragic layer to Leo's story.
Over a half-century later, Ace in the Hole is as relevant and accurate in conveying its purpose as it was in 1951, and its performances are as fresh. Don't miss it.
The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) - 12:00 AM, EST
Fred Amiel (Barry Sullivan), Georgia Lorrison (Lana Turner) and James Lee Bartlow (Dick Powell) all have one thing in common: they hate Jonathan Shields (Kirk Douglas).
But it didn't start out that way. A series of three flashbacks show how each met, and were betrayed by, the producer.
Barry Sullivan as Fred Amiel
Fred was a jack-of-all-trades in Hollywood when he met Jonathan, but his dream was to be a director. Jonathan's father, Hugh Shields, was a fallen mogul who had become the laughing stock of the movie industry. By the time he died, he had to pay people like Fred to mourn at his funeral. Jonathan planned to revive the family name in Hollywood and "cram it down their throats." After years of learning the business together as a powerhouse producer/director team for 'B' pictures, Jonathan trades in his friendship with Fred for a million-dollar movie deal - the very movie Fred dreams of making.
Sullivan's chemistry with Douglas is undeniable, so much that you want the pair to succeed even though you know Jonathan's betrayal is looming.
Lana Turner as Georgia Lorrison
When Hugh Shields reigned in Hollywood, actor George Lorrison was his shining star. Jonathan is determined to push George's daughter, sort-of actress Georgia, out of her dead father's shadow and into the bright lights of his new picture. The problem is, Georgia is a barely-functioning alcoholic with a suicidal streak. Jonathan's just about to give up on his new prospect until she admits she's in love with him.
"I know just how to handle her now," he says. He exploits her feelings to extract a realistic performance for his movie, breaking her heart in the process.
Turner is the "beautiful" to Douglas' "bad," but she's not much else. Her performance lacks the depth needed for someone as complex and damaged as Georgia. Although she's not terrible, she's just not believable and can't hold up against Douglas' crushing portrayal of the ruthless producer.
(It's also a treat to see pre-Leave it to Beaver Barbara Billingsley as someone other than June Cleaver. Here, she's a seamstress dishing out criticism to Lana Turner instead of the typical milk and cookies for "The Beav." Catch another Beaver actress, Madge Blake, in a later scene at the Bartlow house.)
Dick Powell as James Lee Bartlow
James isn't surprised when Jonathan Shields shows interest in adapting his latest book which is "liberally peppered with sex," but he isn't flattered. He can see through Jonathan's attempts to get him to stay on in Hollywood and write the screenplay for the movie. Nevertheless, he gives in when he sees his wife (Gloria Grahame) so excited to be among the stars. James can't seem to get a handle on the script, though, so Jonathan orchestrates a plan that will keep James' focus squarely on his work...with tragic results.
Although he has the least time to tell his story, Powell uses it to show off his dry wit in the face of Douglas' affected charm. They play well off of each other without much room to do it in.
Despite her grating, faux southern belle accent, the generally wonderful Gloria Grahame scored a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role as Rosemary Bartlow.
Kirk Douglas as Jonathan Shields
The Bad and the Beautiful revolves around one ruthless man, and calls for an actor that can cloak cruelty with charm. He has to woo Fred, Georgia and James before he betrays them, and he has to woo the audience, too. Douglas proves he can be cold-hearted in Ace in the Hole, but in The Bad in the Beautiful, he proves he can be a man with no heart at all.
Sources:
- Ace in the Hole. 1951. Dir. Billy Wilder. Perf. Kirk Douglas, Richard Benedict, Jan Sterling. Paramount Pictures. Running Time: 111 min.
- The Bad and the Beautiful. 1952. Dir. Vincente Minnelli. Perf. Kirk Douglas, Dick Powell, Barry Sullivan, Lana Turner. MGM. Running Time: 118 min.
- Douglas, Kirk. The Ragman's Son. New York City, NY: Simon and Schuster, 1988. Print.
Amanda Flinner - Amanda is a freelance writer who earned her Bachelor's degree in Writing from Geneva College in 2006. Although a variety of interests ...
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