| Ace in the Hole | |
|---|---|
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Ace_in_the_Hole_(1951_film_poster).jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Billy Wilder |
| Written by | Walter Newman Lesser Samuels Billy Wilder |
| Story by | Victor Desny (uncredited) |
| Produced by | Billy Wilder |
| Starring | Kirk Douglas Jan Sterling Robert Arthur Porter Hall |
| Cinematography | Charles Lang |
| Edited by | Arthur P. Schmidt |
| Music by | Hugo Friedhofer |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 111 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1.8 million |
| Box office | $1.3 million (rentals)[1] |
Ace in the Hole, also known as The Big Carnival, is a 1951 American satirical drama film directed, produced, and co-written by Billy Wilder. The film stars Kirk Douglas as a cynical, disgraced reporter who creates a media circus surrounding a man trapped in a cave in rural New Mexico to try to regain a job on a major newspaper. The film co-stars Jan Sterling and features Robert Arthur and Porter Hall.[2]
The film marked a series of firsts for Wilder: it was the first time he was involved in a project as a writer, producer, and director; his first film after parting ways with his long-time writing partner Charles Brackett; and his first film to be a critical and commercial failure, though it has since been reappraised as one of his major works.[3]
Without consulting Wilder, Paramount Pictures executive Y. Frank Freeman changed the title to The Big Carnival just prior to its release.[4] Early television broadcasts retained that title, but when aired by Turner Classic Movies – and when released on DVD by The Criterion Collection in July 2007 – it reverted to Ace in the Hole.
In 2017, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[5]
The film is sometimes referred to as a film noir,[6] though some critics dispute this.[7]
- ^ Staff (January 2, 1952) "The Top Box Office Hits of 1951", Variety
- ^ Silver, Alain (2010). Film Noir: The Encyclopedia. Overlook Duckworth. p. 24. ISBN 978-0715638804.
- ^ Sikov 1998, p. 325-38.
- ^ "Notes" TCM.com
- ^ Staff (December 13, 2017). "2017 National Film Registry Is More Than a 'Field of Dreams'". Library of Congress National Film Registry. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
- ^ Shafer, Jack (July 19, 2007). "Presence of Malice: Billy Wilder tours journalism's pus-filled heart in the long-lost Ace in the Hole". Slate. Retrieved January 4, 2011.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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