ACE IN THE HOLE: cynicism at its best

ACE IN THE HOLE is almost 60 years old but what it has to say about cynical exploitative "yellow" journalism is as relevant now as it was on its original release in 1951.
Kirk Douglas stars as Chuck Tatum, a newspaperman on the skids after falling out of the big time and desperate to get back up there again. Marooned and frustrated at the local paper in what was then the sleepy backwater of Albuquerque, New Mexico he's convinced that all he needs is one great - exclusive - story to have the big city editors banging on his door once more.
He discovers his meal ticket in the shape of Leo Minosa, a hapless working joe who's become trapped by a rockfall in an underground cave. Tatum deliberately delays Leo's rescue so he can exploit the story for his own benefit, and in the process turns the incident into a circus which spirals out of his control.
With the exception of "Paths of Glory" I've never been a big fan of Kirk Douglas. Too often, it's seemed to me he's played Kirk Douglas swamping the screen with his oversize personality. But here he is just fantastic not simply acting the part but being Tatum.
"I've met a lot of hard-boiled eggs in my life but you're 20 minutes" Leo's embittered wife Lorraine (played by Jan Sterling) tells him; a line which not only perfectly encapsulates Tatum's take on life but also serves as an illustration of the quality of the script, co-written by Billy Wilder at his acerbic best.
Wilder makes it harder for us to dislike Tatum by depicting the "good" folk as either spinelessly soft-centred or too easily corrupted. Tatum's cynicism and selfishness poisons almost everyone who comes into contact with him; Wilder stylishly making the point that while Tatum is the instigator it's our (the public's) buy-in which permits him to succeed.
The script was rightly Oscar nominated. Alongside "Double Indemnity", "Sunset Boulevard" and "Some Like It Hot" this is a certified Wilder masterpiece What's a real surprise is that Douglas missed out on a nod in the Best Actor category - he certainly deserved it.