The Cincinnati Kid (1965)

As Good As It Gets

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Steve McQueen is the young upstart poker player, Edward G. Robinson an old master, Karl Malden is their friend and dealer, Ann Margret his flirtatious girlfriend, and Tuesday Weld is McQueen's. It's a fantastic cast – McQueen oozes cool, it's special to see Robinson at age 72 deliver a very good performance, Malden plays 'conflicted' well when he's pressured to fix the match, Margret is sexy and has a way of speaking with her eyes, and Weld is incredibly cute but also nuanced. To top it off, Joan Blondell is the backup dealer, and while her role and performance aren't amazing, it's very nice to see her and Robinson together again nearly three decades after 1936's 'Bullets or Ballots'.New Orleans is a fantastic setting and director Norman Jewison makes good use of it. I have to say, I was not all that jazzed about the scene with the cock fight, which is cruel. And, he's less effective in making the movie feel as though it's in the 1930's, but maybe that doesn't matter. The poker talk at the tables is pretty authentic, but I always find it amusing that the 5-card stud hands shown routinely in movies are extremely rare. The ending comes as a jolt and seems abrupt, but perhaps that's because I was thinking how interesting it would have been if it was revealed that Robinson was engaged in a nefarious fix with Blondell. As it is, the movie is about integrity and dignity, even in what may seem to be an unlikely place, amongst gamblers. Cheating, and accusations of cheating, are shown more than once to be signs of weakness, whereas real skill is cool and confident, and there is mutual respect between McQueen and Robinson's characters. How interesting that McQueen falters on the relationship side by being seduced by Margret, though even then he doesn't deny it or make excuses. It may be a little clichéd and it may have borrowed its theme from 'The Hustler', but it's an engaging, interesting film.

Directed by Norman Jewison, who took over for Sam Peckinpah when he was fired by producer Martin Ransohoff, with a screenplay by Ring Lardner Jr. and Terry Southern that was based on Richard Jessup's novel, this slightly above average drama explores the world of high stakes poker. While the story itself is fairly ordinary and predictable, the film's strengths are the rich, credible characterizations by its just right cast.Steve McQueen (in the title role) plays Eric Stoner, the young challenger to "the man" and aging legendary champion Lancey Howard, played by Edward G. Robinson. Karl Malden plays Shooter, a former challenger himself who's currently advises the Kid. Ann-Margaret plays Shooter's sexy "man eater" wife (of questionable background) Melba Nile, who's spent her husband into a precarious position. Tuesday Weld plays Eric's country girlfriend (a largely unnecessary character), Christian Rudd, who's getting an "education" from Melba. Joan Blondell plays the well known big game dealer, Lady Fingers. Rip Torn plays a wannabe good poker player, wealthy New Orleans businessman named William Jefferson Slade. Theodore Marcuse plays Slade's heavy. Jack Weston, Cab Calloway, and Milton Selzer play characters in the film's big, climactic game. Jeff Corey plays a noteworthy spectator. Karl Swenson and Irene Tedrow play Christian's parents.After some set-ups: the requisite inconsequential game after which the Kid almost gets killed by some sore losers (ala The Hustler (1961)) and another between Lancey and Slade, to give the humiliated Southerner a reason to want revenge against "the man", it's learned that Slade holds a $12,000 marker (I.O.U.) from Shooter, who's scheduled to split the dealing duties during the big showdown game between Lancey and the Kid, with Lady Fingers. Known for his integrity, this naturally causes (a brief) inner conflict for Shooter, who's wife would leave him in a flash (e.g. for the new champ) if he could no longer afford her.All these events lead to the final poker game, spiced initially by outbursts from Pig (Weston) and continuing until only "the man" and the Kid are left. The tension is palatable throughout, and the ending may surprise.

An up-and-coming poker player tries to prove himself in a high-stakes match against a long-time master of the game (Edward G. Robinson , though Spencer Tracy was originally cast as Lancey Howard but poor health forced him to withdraw and he was replaced). Cincinnati Kid lets nothing stand in his way , especially the reigning king of the card tables , Lancey Howard . Cincinnati gets together in 30's New Orleans for big poker game with unexpected consequences .This interesting film contains emotion , drama , a lot of competing game in the tradition of the not dissimilar : The Hustler , and meaningless romances between McQueen , Tuesday Weld and Ann Margret . Nice acting by Steve McQueen as a roving card-shark determined on his way to the big time, here he had one of his earliest and best performances . Awesome Edward G. Robinson as a veteran poker player , this is the second movie in which plays a gambler that features a straight flush in diamonds , the first was Smart Money (1931) . Extraordinary support cast such as Rip Torn , Jack Weston , Cab Calloway , Jeff Corey , Milton Selzer , Karl Swenson , Robert DoQui , Dub Taylor and Sharon Tate was replaced in the film by Tuesday Weld . And special appearance by Joan Blondell , Mitzi Gaynor campaigned for the role of "Lady Fingers", but it ended up going to Joan ; rumors are abound as to why Blondell got the role, with the most common being that Gaynor and Ann-Margret did not quite get along . Appropriate and evocative Art Direction by Edward C. Carfagno and George W. Davis . Marvelous cinematography capturing splendidly New Orleans settings by top-notch director of photography Philip H. Lathrop . Adequate as well as atmospheric soundtrack by Lalo Schifrin , including catching jazz music . The motion picture was well realized by Norman Jewison , he directed after Sam Peckinpah was fired by producer Martin Ransohoff who was unhappy with the film tone and fired Peckinpah . Jewison is a prestigious and veteran filmmaker, his greatest hit is , of course , ¨Jesus Christ Superstar¨ . He directed successful movies as ¨Fiddler on the roof¨ , ¨Agnes of God¨ , ¨Moonstruck¨ , ¨Thomas Crown¨ and this ¨Cinncinati Kid¨ . However , he also got some flops as ¨Bogus¨, ¨In country¨ , ¨Only you¨ and ¨Other's people money¨ and his last picture titled ¨The statement¨ . He considers ¨The Hurricane¨ (1999) the last in a trilogy of racial bigotry movies he's realized, the first two being ¨In the Heat of the Night¨ (1967) and ¨A Soldier's Story¨ (1984). Cincinnati Kid rating : Good, worthwhile seeing for its prodigious interpretations , magnificent settings and colorful cinematography . .

Gritty and glamorous comes together in this classic Steve McQueen movie.Movie is about the cold world of gambling, where "Kid" (Steve McQueen) excels in his art. The story revolves of course around his gambling, but there're two beautiful girls Melba (Ann Margaret) and Christian (Tuesday Weld) who are interested in him. Kid hears that legendary gambler Lancey Howard (Edward G Robinson) is in town, and gambling match is on. The game starts innocently enough, until Kid discovers that his friend Shooter (Karl Malden) who's dealing the card is passing him favorable cards. Someone wants Kid to win at all cost.The movie is beautifully shot, and casts are all A list. They really catch your eyes with their star qualities. So although the movie is supposed to be happening in a seedy place, the atmosphere is gorgeous. We don't see movies like this any more as somehow the star quality has gone down in recent years with actors.Tuesday Weld who's the inspiration for Rolling Stones' song Ruby Tuesday plays Steve McQueen's fiancé. Over doing anything is detrimental to life, and maybe the point of this movie is just that. But knowing your place in life is more difficult than winning a poker game.