tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5569750317755310322.post2225015979382476709..comments2023-11-19T04:43:33.827+11:00Comments on Matt vs. the Academy: 1961 - The HustlerMatt Fosterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10317583098531787395noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5569750317755310322.post-52014361690285476212013-11-07T00:38:32.326+11:002013-11-07T00:38:32.326+11:00Congratulations to you and Kate on your upcoming p...Congratulations to you and Kate on your upcoming parenthood. That's wonderful news. Now lets see...if my math is correct, sometime between reporting on Fanny and West Side Story....<br /><br />The Hustler is a riveting, moody tale of a young man with loads of talent but little character. It is only through emotional and physical tragedy that he develops character. This was the first film I saw that convinced me that Paul Newman was quite an actor. It was a significant improvement over Somebody Up There Likes Me. I was pulling for him at the Oscars. George C. Scott was absolutley chilling and nine years before he refused his Best Actor Oscar for Patton, he tried to withdraw his name from the nomination list for Best Supporting Actor. The Academy issued a statement something to the effect that it was his performance, not him personally, that was under consideration, and thus denied his request. When he lost to George Chakiris, it probably reinforced his disdain for awards.<br /><br />An interesting bit of trivia from IMDB was that The Hustler was one of the first films to use a pre-credit sequence. I enjoyed watching this movie again. It captured the mood of the time period so well.Mike Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14953461679716236054noreply@blogger.com