|
''Ace in the Hole'' (aka ''The Big Carnival'') is a 1951 American film noir〔http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/press_box/2007/07/presence_of_malice.html〕 starring Kirk Douglas as a cynical, disgraced reporter who stops at nothing to try to regain a job on a major newspaper. It marked a series of firsts for auteur Billy Wilder: it was the first time he was involved in a project as a writer, producer, and director; his first film following his breakup with long-time writing partner Charles Brackett, with whom he had collaborated on ''The Lost Weekend'' and ''Sunset Boulevard'', among others; and his first film to be a critical and commercial failure. The story is a biting examination of the seedy relationship between the press, the news it reports and the manner in which it reports it. Without consulting Wilder, Paramount Pictures executive Y. Frank Freeman changed the title to ''The Big Carnival'' just prior to its release. 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''. ==Plot== Chuck Tatum is a fiercely ambitious, self-centered, wisecracking, down-on-his-luck reporter who has worked his way down the ladder. He has come west to New Mexico from New York City, along the way being fired from eleven newspapers for libel, adultery, and heavy drinking, among other charges. Now that his car has broken down and Tatum is broke, he talks his way into a reporting job for the ''Albuquerque Sun-Bulletin'', a paper of little consequence. Tatum stays sober and works there uneventfully for a year. Then while unhappily on assignment to cover a rattlesnake hunt, he learns about Leo Minosa, a local man who has become trapped in a cave collapse while gathering ancient Indian artifacts. Sensing a golden opportunity, Tatum manipulates the rescue effort, convincing an unscrupulous sheriff to pressure the construction contractor charged with the rescue into drilling from above, rather than shoring up the existing passages, so that Tatum can prolong his stay on the front pages of newspapers nationwide. Lorraine, the victim's wife, goes along with the reporter's scheme. She is eager to leave Leo and their struggling business in the middle of nowhere, a combination trading post and restaurant. Thanks to the publicity Tatum generates, she experiences a financial windfall, particularly from thousands of tourists who come to witness the rescue. Herbie Cook, the newspaper's young photographer, slowly loses his idealism as he follows Tatum's lead and envisions himself selling pictures to ''Look'' or ''Life''. The editor of the ''Albuquerque Sun-Bulletin'' tries to talk some sense into his employees, but Tatum quits on the spot, having sold the exclusive rights to his copy to a New York editor for a lot of money and, more importantly, his old job back. Thousands flock to the town. The rescue site literally becomes a carnival, with rides, entertainment, songs about Leo, even games of chance. Tatum begins drinking again. He takes up with Lorraine and is greeted heroically by the crowd each time he returns from visiting poor Leo in the cave. After five days of drilling, the party atmosphere ends abruptly. Upon learning that Leo is fading fast, Tatum belatedly tries to get the contractor to switch back to the quicker procedure of shoring up the walls of the cave, but the vibration from drilling has made this impossible. Leo dies. Tatum has mistreated Leo's wife once too often as well, and she stabs him with a pair of scissors. Tatum barely reaches his old office in Albuquerque, then collapses on the floor as he is about to reveal a big story: how he caused Leo's death. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ace in the Hole (1951 film)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|