Ace in the Hole

aka: The Big Carnival
USA 1951, 111 minutes, B/W
Dir. Billy Wilder
Rating: [PG]
Genres: Classics, Drama

Feat. Kirk Douglas, Jan Sterling, Porter Hall

Aroview: Cast in a hole until recently, this scathing editorial on media sensationalism and the human spectacle stars Kirk Douglas (never fiercer) as a callous newspaperman who exploits a trapped miner for his own journalistic gain.

Too heartless and on the nose for its time, Wilder’s dark horse media satire hasn’t diminished in the slightest, plumbing the lower depths of American culture and moral fragility, all the while building towards a dizzying, carnivalesque finale lensed in the harshest of black and white.

Member Reviews

Average rating (Very Good). Showing 1-2 of 2 member reviews.

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4 stars (Very Good) Douglas is precisely cast as a ruthless egomaniac, just like his real life character if the film bios I've read are to be believed. This is a shrewd film, lacking the typical '50s Hollywood sentimentality. As relevant now, as ever. ~Regando
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3 stars (Good Enough) Douglas is Douglas. Jan Sterling is very good as well & takes everything Douglas throws at her including a couple of smacks in the chops. The screenplay is solid & although the ending is a bit over dramatic it should last the test of time for a while yet. ~Tubbs