The Gang That Could Shoot Straight

Rating: 9/10 (27 August 2013)

This is one of the Last, maybe the Last, Film-Noir before the Genre Appropriately became Labeled Neo-Noir sometime in the Mid-Sixties. Not much Precise Accuracy in Defining in Film-Noir, among Fans, Critics, and Historians, is Universally accepted as Precise.
It was Noticed and Studied by Outside Sources who were the First to perceive a Cohesive and Collective Style that initially Emerged Spontaneously with No Pretensions. It was French Film Critics that Affectionately and Accurately Named Film-Noir.
The Hustler is a Dark and Depressing slice of Low-Life. "Minnesota Fats" (Jackie Gleason) tells the Custodian in the Pool Room to "get rid of that sunlight". Sarah and "Fast" Eddie (Paul Newman) make a few references to "closing the shutters", or "drawing the curtains". When Eddie tells Sarah She Looks Different, She replies, "it's the light".
Dripping in Gloomy Atmosphere and Ugly Characters, this is a Hard-Boiled Character Study that Doesn't Pull Punches about Alcoholism, Adultery, and Affliction.
All the main Characters are "Depraved, Perverted, Crippled" in one way or another. Even Fats obviously Indulges in one of the Deadly Sins, Gluttony. This Rogue Gallery is the Forefront of this Backdrop of Pool Rooms and Hustlers and it is a Rough and Unattractive Setting.
The Story's Concern with Character, or Lack Thereof, is the driving Narrative and it is presented in a Seedy Environment played out by great Acting and Cinematography and Set Design.
The Script may seem a little Wordy, Forced and Unpolished, and it sometimes Pales in comparison to the rest of this otherwise Flawless Production. For some, this is one of the Best and most Popular Movies of the Early Sixties. For others, it is one the Greatest Movies ever made. The Former is more Accurate.