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The Color of Money

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For the novel by Walter Tevis, see The Color of Money (novel).

The Color of Money
Theatrical release poster by Robert Tanenbaum[1]
Directed byMartin Scorsese
Screenplay byRichard Price
Based onThe Color of Money
by Walter Tevis
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyMichael Ballhaus
Edited byThelma Schoonmaker
Music byRobbie Robertson
Production
companies
Distributed byBuena Vista Distribution Co.
Release date
  • October 17, 1986 (1986-10-17) (United States)
Running time
120 minutes[2]
CountryUnited States
Languages
  • English
  • Spanish
Budget$14.5 million[3]
Box office$52.3 million

The Color of Money is a 1986 American sports drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is the sequel to the 1961 film The Hustler. Like the previous film, The Color of Money is based on the 1984 novel by Walter Tevis.

The film stars Paul Newman reprising his role as "Fast Eddie" Felson, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. The film also stars Tom Cruise playing a pool hustler, and features Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio as the girlfriend of Cruise's character.

The plot follows the trio as they hustle pool halls and make their way to a nine-ball tournament in Atlantic City.

The film received a generally positive critical response on its release, although some critics thought that the film was an inferior followup to The Hustler.

Plot

[edit]

Former pro-pool player "Fast Eddie" Felson has given up the game and is now a successful liquor salesman in Chicago. However, he partners with pool players, including a hustler named Julian, who is outmatched at nine-ball by the young and charismatic Vincent. Recognizing Vincent's skill, and his girlfriend Carmen's inexperience at luring players to lose money, Eddie tells the couple of their excellent potential for hustling.

Carmen visits Eddie alone to inquire about his interest in Vincent. Finding him working at Child World, Eddie invites Vincent to leave the next day for six weeks of hustling on the road, culminating in a nine-ball tournament in Atlantic City. Manipulating Vincent's insecurities about Carmen and giving him a valuable Balabushka cue stick, Eddie persuades him to accept his offer. Eddie's abrupt departure upsets Julian, as well as Eddie's girlfriend, Janelle.

Vincent and Carmen hit the road with Eddie in his Cadillac, visiting a series of pool halls, with Eddie taking most of any winnings and absorbing losses. Eddie attempts to teach him the art of hustling, but Vincent balks at having to play below his ability. At a pool hall run by his old acquaintance, Orvis, Eddie becomes fed up with Vincent's arrogance, and leaves him. In Vincent's absence, Eddie reminds Carmen that they are partners with a mutual business interest in Vincent. Eddie returns to find Vincent grandstanding, beating the pool hall's best player but scaring off a wealthier mark. Eddie and Vincent talk frankly, agreeing that Vincent must curb his ego if they are to succeed.

Eddie and Carmen struggle to rein in Vincent's showboating. After a string of successful games, Vincent plays the famed Grady Seasons, but is directed by Eddie to dump the game to inflate the odds against Vincent in Atlantic City. Goaded by Grady, Vincent nearly fails to throw the game, and Eddie is inspired to play again. After some success, Eddie is beaten by Amos, a hustler. Humiliated, Eddie leaves Vincent and Carmen with enough money to make it to Atlantic City.

Eddie enters the Atlantic City tournament, in which he triumphs against Vincent. Vincent and Carmen surprise Eddie with $8,000; his "cut" of Vincent's winnings. Vincent says that he intentionally lost their match.

In his semifinal match, Eddie forfeits the game and returns Vincent's money. Determined to win legitimately, Eddie faces Vincent in a private match, declaring, "I'm back!"

Cast

[edit]

Production

[edit]
To perform his own pool shots, Tom Cruise practiced for hours on end.

The Color of Money was released by Touchstone Pictures, after both 20th Century Fox and Columbia Pictures declined.[3] The film was shot in 49 days with cinematographer Michael Ballhaus and a budget of $14.5 million.[3] It is an adaptation of the 1984 novel of the same name by Walter Tevis, and was written by Richard Price. Although it features some characters from the novel, it was not written to be a sequel.[3] A screenplay was written by Tevis, but the filmmakers decided not to use it.[4][5] Jean-Pierre Léaud was briefly considered for the role of Vincent.[6] It was shot in and around Chicago, with much of the filming taking place in pool and billiard halls, rather than in built sets.[7][8] The film was edited by Thelma Schoonmaker, who used closeup shots of pool balls being played, as well as wider visuals of the players, to get across the visual of a pool hall.[3]

Director Martin Scorsese cited the influence of techniques and lighting in the 1947 Powell-Pressburger film, Black Narcissus, when making The Color of Money. In particular, he stated that the extreme closeups of Tom Cruise around the pool table were inspired by those of the nuns in that film.[9] Paul Newman said that the best advice he was given by Scorsese was to "try not to be funny". Cruise performed most of his own pool shots. An exception was a jump shot over two balls to pot another. Scorsese believed that Cruise could learn the shot, but that it would take too long, so the shot was performed for him by professional player, Mike Sigel. Cruise mentioned that, to prepare for the role, he bought a pool table for his apartment and practiced for hours on end. Standing in for the valuable Balabushka cue in the movie is a Joss J-18 (which became the Joss 10-N7), made to resemble a classic Balabushka.[10]

Sigel was a technical director, and he and fellow player, Ewa Mataya Laurance, served as technical consultants and shot performers in the film. Absent from the film is the character, Minnesota Fats, played by Jackie Gleason in The Hustler.[3] Newman said that he had wanted the character to appear, but that none of the attempts to include him fit well into the story that was being written. According to Scorsese, Gleason apparently agreed with Newman's opinion that Minnesota Fats was not essential to the film's story. Scorsese said that Gleason was presented with a draft of the script that had Fats worked into the narrative, but after reading it, Gleason declined to reprise the role because he felt that the character seemed to have been added as "an afterthought".[5][11]

Release

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The Color of Money had its world premiere at the Ziegfeld Theater in New York City October 8, 1986. The film went into wide release in the United States October 17, 1986.[12] The American release was limited to select theaters throughout the country, with the film opening in more theaters during the next four weeks of its initial release. After its run, the film grossed $52,293,982 domestically.[13] The film was released on DVD January 3, 2000,[14] and on Blu-ray June 5, 2012.[15]

Reception

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Critical response

[edit]
Paul Newman's performance received positive reviews, earning him the Academy Award for Best Actor.

The Color of Money received a generally positive critical response on its release, although some critics thought that the film was an inferior followup to The Hustler. Based on 48 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, the film received an 88% approval rating from critics, with an average score of 7.10/10. The site's consensus reads: "That it's inferior to the original goes without saying, but Paul Newman and Tom Cruise are a joy to watch, and Martin Scorsese's direction is typically superb."[16] Review aggregator website Metacritic reported a weighted average score of 77 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[17] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B−" on a scale of A+ to F.[18]

The film was praised for the major cast. Vincent Canby, writing for The New York Times, commented on the "three fully realized" main characters, and that the journey with them throughout the film is "most satisfying".[19] Canby, however, also commented that it "lacks in narrative shapeliness", before giving the film 9 out of 10.[19]

Sheila Benson of the Los Angeles Times called these characters an "electrifying unholy trio", and praised the metaphors between hustling and pool.[20]

Miami Herald writer Bill Cosford, however, commented that "whatever Scorsese and Price have to say about these marvelous characters, it is not anything interesting".[21]

Tom Hutchingson of Radio Times said that Newman "deserved" to win an Oscar for his performance.[22]

Reviewers compared The Color of Money with other Scorsese films. Jason Bailey, writing for Flavorwire, described the film as only "mid-level" for the director, but that it was so "overpowering ... jazzy and boisterous" that he could not help but enjoy.[23]

The Chicago Tribune's Gene Siskel commented that the "grit is gone", for Scorsese was not backed up by a veteran contributor, as in his other works.[24]

People commented that the film benefited from the cast of characters, and Scorsese's choice of actors.[25]

Accolades

[edit]

For The Color of Money, Newman received the Academy Award for Best Actor, his first Academy Award and his seventh nomination.[3]

Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
Academy Awards Best Actor Paul Newman Won [26]
Best Supporting Actress Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio Nominated
Best Screenplay – Based on Material from Another Medium Richard Price Nominated
Best Art Direction Boris Leven and Karen O'Hara Nominated
Cahiers du cinéma Best Film Martin Scorsese Nominated [27]
Golden Globe Awards Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama Paul Newman Nominated [28]
Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio Nominated
MTV Video Music Awards Best Video from a Film Eric Clapton – "It's in the Way That You Use It" Nominated [29]
National Board of Review Awards Top Ten Films 6th Place [30]
Best Actor Paul Newman Won
National Society of Film Critics Awards Best Actor 3rd Place [31]
New York Film Critics Circle Awards Best Actor 2nd Place [32]
Best Supporting Actress Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio 3rd Place

Soundtrack

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The soundtrack album of the motion picture was released by MCA Records in 1986.[33] Robbie Robertson produced the score for the film.[34]

Track listing:

  1. "Who Owns This Place?" (Don Henley/Danny Kortchmar/JD Souther) – Don Henley (4:55)
  2. "It's in the Way That You Use It" (Eric Clapton/Robbie Robertson) – Eric Clapton (4:00)
  3. "Let Yourself in for It" (Robert Palmer) – Robert Palmer (5:20)
  4. "Don't Tell Me Nothin'" (Willie Dixon) – Willie Dixon (4:42)
  5. "Two Brothers and a Stranger" (Mark Knopfler) – Mark Knopfler (2:42)
  6. "Standing on the Edge of Love" (Jerry Lynn Williams) – B.B. King (3:59)
  7. "Modern Blues" (Robbie Robertson) – Robbie Robertson (2:57)
  8. "Werewolves of London" (L. Marinell/Waddy Wachtel/Warren Zevon) – Warren Zevon (3:24)
  9. "My Baby's in Love with Another Guy" (H. Brightman/L. Lucie) – Robert Palmer (2:30)
  10. "The Main Title" (Robbie Robertson) – Robbie Robertson (2:46)

Legacy

[edit]

The 1996 nine-ball challenge match between Efren Reyes and Earl Strickland was named "The Color of Money" in honor of the film. The second challenge, which took place in 2001, was titled "The Color of Money II".[35][36]

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ "The Color of Money Movie Poster (#1 of 4)". IMPAwards. Archived from the original on December 20, 2019. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  2. ^ "The Color of Money". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on April 23, 2019. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Pelan, Tim (October 16, 2020). "Play for Play: How The Color of Money's 'One For Them' Assignment Reignited Martin Scorsese's Hunger for the Work". Cinephilia & Beyond. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
  4. ^ LoBrutto, Vincent (November 30, 2007). Martin Scorsese: A Biography. Westport, Connecticut: Praeger Publishers. ISBN 978-0-275-98705-3.
  5. ^ a b Forsberg, Myra (October 19, 1986). "'The Color of Money': Three Men and a Sequel". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 30, 2017.
  6. ^ "Jean-Pierre Léaud". Purple.
  7. ^ "Chicago pool hall maintains magic from decades-old Hollywood film". FOX 32 Chicago. November 6, 2015. Archived from the original on September 3, 2021. Retrieved September 3, 2021.
  8. ^ Buss, Andrew (November 25, 2016). "10 Movies You Didn't Realize Were Filmed In Chicago". Culture Trip. Archived from the original on September 3, 2021. Retrieved September 3, 2021.
  9. ^ "Black Narcissus (The Criterion Collection) (2001) DVD commentary". Criterion. Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved October 27, 2013.
  10. ^ "Commercial information about the Joss 10-N7 model pool cue". Joss Cues. Archived from the original on July 6, 2015.
  11. ^ Levy, Shawn (May 5, 2009). Paul Newman: A Life. New York: Harmony Books. ISBN 978-0-307-35375-7..
  12. ^ "Opens Today". The Manila Standard. March 25, 1987. p. 15. Archived from the original on December 5, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  13. ^ "The Color of Money (1986)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on November 11, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2012.
  14. ^ "The Color of Money". Metacritic. Archived from the original on August 30, 2021. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  15. ^ Landy, Tom (March 6, 2012). "'The Color of Money' Announced for Blu-ray". Archived from the original on June 16, 2012. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  16. ^ "The Color of Money (1986)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on April 23, 2019. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  17. ^ "The Color of Money Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  18. ^ "Home". CinemaScore. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  19. ^ a b Canby, Vincent (October 17, 1986). "Screen: Paul Newman in 'The Color of Money'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  20. ^ Benson, Sheila (October 17, 1986). "Movie review: Newman chalks one up in 'The Color of Money'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 6, 2020. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  21. ^ Cosford, Bill (October 17, 1986). "The Color of Money Review". Miami Herald. p. 1.
  22. ^ Hutchinson, Tom. "The Color of Money (1986)". Radio Times. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
  23. ^ Bailey, Jason (March 27, 2017). "Second Glance: The Whiz-Bang Artistry of Scorsese's 'The Color of Money'". Flavorwire. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
  24. ^ Siskel, Gene (October 17, 1986). "Flick of the week: Sequel to "Hustler" a disappointment". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on September 5, 2020. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
  25. ^ "Picks and Pans Review: The Color of Money". People. October 27, 1986. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
  26. ^ "The 59th Academy Awards (1987) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  27. ^ Johnson, Eric C. "Cahiers du Cinema: Top Ten Lists 1951-2009". Alumnus Caltech. Archived from the original on March 27, 2012. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
  28. ^ "The Color of Money". Golden Globe Award. Archived from the original on July 11, 2019. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  29. ^ "MTV VMAs 1987 - MTV Video Music Awards 1987". Awards and Shows. Archived from the original on August 30, 2021. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  30. ^ "1986 Award Winners". National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. 2016. Archived from the original on December 7, 2016. Retrieved October 31, 2016.
  31. ^ "Past Awards". National Society of Film Critics. December 19, 2009. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  32. ^ "1986 New York Film Critics Circle Awards". New York Film Critics Circle. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  33. ^ The catalogue number for the original CD release was DMCG 6023. The soundtrack information was taken from the CD booklet.
  34. ^ "Robbie Robertson On Scoring The Irishman". Headliner Magazine. Archived from the original on August 30, 2021. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  35. ^ "'Bata' Reyes, Strickland in $100,000 duel". Manila Standard Today. November 27, 1996. p. 15.
  36. ^ "The Greatest Pool Games of Legend Efren Reyes". Pool Scene. November 20, 2017. Archived from the original on September 21, 2020. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
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