The performances are what make this movie great.

Rating: 8/10 (19 September 1999)

Except for "Cat on a hot tin roof", Paul Newman didn't get any big roles until "The hustler". But after he played the role of Eddie Felson, which got him a nomination, he became one of the most highly acclaimed actors in Hollywood. So I guess you could say that to Paul Newman, "The hustler" represents the same thing "The graduate" represents to Dustin Hoffman. It was his break-through movie and he was really good in it. "The hustler" is also probably the best movie that director Robert Rossen has ever directed. He threw in together the ingredients of a film-noir and of a drama, mixed them together and created a classic.
One night, Eddie Felson (Newman) decides to go to a pool-room one night to play the local champ, Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason). He starts off pretty well and that frustrates Fats for he has never lost. But as the hours pass by, Eddie starts drinking and becomes totally drunk and so Fats starts winning again until Felson is completely broke and must be carried out of the pool-room.
Back in his town again, Eddie meets a woman called Sarah Packard (Piper Laurie) at the train station and falls in love with her. She invites him over to her place and soon after, he moves in with her. And so Eddie begins to settle down. Then, one day he meets a man named Bert Gordon (George C. Scott) who tells Eddie that he will help him beat Minnesota Fats but in exchange, he wants 75% of everything Eddie makes hustling. Eddie tries to negotiate with Bert about the size of the slice he is asking for but Bert is unflexable. P***ed off, Eddie leaves the bar where he spoke with Bert telling him he doesn't need his help.
Eddie goes to another bar and hustles a pool-player until the guy is flat broke. But the guys in the bar despise hustlers and once Eddie has won and collected his money, the boys take him outside and break his thumbs so he won't be able to play pool again for a while. When he gets back home, Sarah puts some bandages on his thumbs and he slowly begins healing. It is then that he notices that his girlfriend has a serious drinking problem and that something has to be done.
The rest of the movie is the best part of the whole thing. Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason, Piper Laurie, and George C. Scott lead a terrific cast. Plus, Robert Rossen's choice of filming the movie in black and white made the movie all the more riveting and gripping. But it's Jackie Gleason and George C. Scott who steal the show, one playing one of the best pool players ever, the other playing a greedy man who has Eddie beat Fats only for the money. A true classic.