The Color Of Money [DVD] [1987]

Once, Fast Eddie Felson (Paul Newman) mastered this art; a whiz kid out to beat champion Minnesota Fats, he had to learn some painful lessons instead. But that was 25 years ago - in 1961's "Hustler," to which "The Color of Money" is a belated sequel - and now it's "dead and buried." Now Eddie is a liquor salesman; even if he's still got the hustle down cold: just listen to him philosophizing about a bourbon's color, age and acidic content and I'll lay you any bet you'll be buying a case from him in no time at all.

Yet, Eddie keeps hanging around pool halls, and one day the inevitable happens: He runs into Vincent (Tom Cruise), almost a reincarnation of his younger self; a guy with a sledgehammer break and an "incredible flake," as Eddie opines less than charitably, cocky beyond belief but apparently unaware of his potential, preferring to perfect his video game reflexes on the theory that this might get him into West Point, instead of focusing on his greatest and, more importantly, only financially viable area of expertise: pool. Now, if Eddie has learned one thing it's that whatever your field, it *all* comes down to money; and the guy who's got the most of it is the best. But to get there, you have to be more than just excellent at what you do: You have to be a student of psychology, learn to take advantage of others, understand when to lose is actually to win; and if you're a "natural character" like Vincent, you have to learn to "flake on and flake off" - to be yourself, but on purpose. In short, it takes the right proportion of both brains and b*lls to win big at pool. All this, Eddie is determined to teach Vince, even if it takes some support from his girlfriend Carmen (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) to get him going. But eventually they do set out on the road, for a six-week high-intensity training in hustles and cons, with their eyes set on a high-stakes nine-ball tournament in Atlantic City at the end. And Eddie, once exploited by a ruthless promoter himself, dispenses tough love; all to drive home one crucial lesson: "Nice guys finish last;" and mercy towards *any* opponent is downright unprofessional.

Vincent, Carmen and Eddie make an unequal trio; they collide as often and as hard as cue balls, and it's a sheer joy to see these outstanding actors go up against each other: Cruise as the cocky kid who refuses to drop his ego trips, Mastrantonio as his tough-talking girlfriend, and Newman as the seasoned pro who suddenly gets goose-bumpy again when entering a pool room (even if to his shame he finds the place now used for furniture storage), rediscovers that money won is "twice as sweet" as money earned, and at last gets hungry enough to get back into the game himself, albeit at the price of first being hustled by a kid with a dumb-fat-underdog routine (brilliantly played by Forest Whitaker). For Tom Cruise, who left a lasting impression with 1983's "Risky Business" but otherwise only had a few middling movies under his belt at this point, this was a great opportunity to show his chops opposite one of the business's all-time greats, and he was more than up to the task. (Although he shot to superstardom the same year with "Top Gun," even here virtually all of his trademark mannerisms and voice inflections - particularly when playing cocky - are already fully present.) Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio earned Oscar- and Golden-Globe-nominations for her portrayal of Carmen, who clues into Eddie's "pool is business" lessons quicker than Vince and, after a first-hand education on the use of "that thing," finds ways through Vincent's cockiness where Eddie doesn't have access. Paul Newman finally netted his long-overdue Academy Award; thus belatedly making up for the undeserved pass for "The Hustler," after the Academy had summarily sugarcoated a total of seven unfulfilled nominations - and numerous award-worthy appearances that didn't even earn that kind of nod - with a lifetime achievement award the year before. (Newman accepted, but wasn't present at either ceremony.)

What makes this movie stand out, however, is not merely its tremendous cast, from the central trio to Helen Shaver (Eddie's girlfriend Janelle), John Turturro (Julian, the "stake horse" Vincent replaces in Eddie's favor), Scorsese's dog Zoe (credited as "dog walkby"!), Iggy Pop, and several top pool players, e.g. Steve "The Miz" Mizerak, Jimmy "Pretty Boy Floyd" Mataya (together with wife Eva also technical advisor) and Keith McCready (Vincent's nemesis Grady Seasons). Moreover, nobody could have captured the pool halls' dingy allure, a trick shot's swift precision and the balls' movement over the table quite like Michael Ballhaus - there's a reason they call him "Hollywood's Eye." And then there's the score, by the "Band's" ringleader Robbie Robertson; featuring contributions from a virtual who-is-who of rock and blues's all time greatest, including Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, B.B. King, Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, Don Henley, Warren Zevon, Phil Collins, Robert Palmer and Percy Sledge; pointedly framing all key scenes and doubling the edge of the cue balls' and characters' collisions alike.

The movie's ending may appear anticlimactic, as the story seems to build up to a showdown which we never get to see. But for Eddie, it's ultimately about going up against Vince's best game - and the only thing that matters is that he's back, and there to stay for the duration this time. And no question: back he is.