Ace in the Hole

Directed by Billy Wilder, Ace in the Hole follows down-on-his-luck reporter Chuck Tatum (Kirk Douglas) as he stumbles upon a career-making story involving a man (Richard Benedict’s Leo) trapped deep inside an artifact-laden cave – with complications ensuing as Chuck begins inserting himself into the potentially tragic scenario in an effort to keep it going longer. Filmmaker Wilder, working from a script written with Lesser Samuels and Walter Newman, delivers a slow-moving yet progressively absorbing drama that ultimately does pack a far more potent punch than one might’ve anticipated, as the movie, which benefits substantially from Douglas’ commanding, career-best performance, boasts an often impressively cynical and dark sensibility that generally proves impossible to resist – with Ace in the Hole‘s deeply pessimistic view of the media certainly ensuring that it remains just as relevant now as it ever did (if not more so). It’s clear, too, that the picture’s increasingly engrossing vibe is heightened by Wilder’s ongoing emphasis on compelling periphery elements, and although the film does lose a little steam in the buildup to its finale, Ace in the Hole closes with a stirring stretch that does, in the end, cement its place as an undeniable classic and one of Wilder’s very best movies.

***1/2 out of ****