Ace in the Hole

The basic structure of Ace in the Hole is essentially a story that has been told countless times. It’s a rags-to-riches story, with the central character encountering mass amounts of corruption when met with the new position of power. Usually when these stories are told, they are predictable and tiring. However, Billy Wilder takes this basic structure and turns it into something much more unique for this film, making it one of his best and most underrated films.

The story of Ace in the Hole is extremely unique due to the central character, Chuck Tatum, played masterfully by Kirk Douglas. Unlike most rags-to-riches stories, Tatum never starts off as some sort of mild-mannered, lovable everyman. So, gone are any comparisons that could be made to tragic figures in films contemporary to this, such as Willie Stark in All the King’s Men. No, Tatum is already a despicable, rotten, pathetic excuse of a man from the start of the film. He is in the position he’s in because of his own treacherous acts and shows no hint of looking to change. As he progresses into a position of power, the audience is not asking itself questions such as, “How far can a man of such a humble background overcome his poor surroundings and rise to the top?” but rather asking, “How much can a corrupt individual use his trickery to his advantage?”

Yet the audience is never turned off from Tatum. As much as he is unlikable, he’s never one that the audience can’t care for. He’s the kind of character you hate yet can’t take your eyes off of because you have a need to see what he says and does next. He immediately draws those watching in with his fast-talking nature and ability to carefully manipulate other characters. One of the opening scenes involving him talking the seemingly hard-to-crack newspaper editor Jacob Boot (Porter Hall) into giving him a job for his newspaper effectively shows that he is no ordinary protagonist, luring the audience in to see what could he possibly do next.

What also makes Tatum quite the unique character is the fact that he’s not the man who others look to change and turn into a good man. The majority of the supporting characters are made up of people as equally corrupt as he is, or those with morals who look to just get him out of the picture. They realize the kind of man they are dealing with and look to deal with that many only. The only character that comes the closest to changing Tatum is Leo Minosa (Richard Benedict). He is the only character that Tatum looks to help other than himself. However, what prevents Tatum from even considering to change his ways is the fact that most of Tatum’s attempts to try to help Minosa contain underlying selfish concerns. He only wants to help Minosa because it would have an adverse affect on himself.

Focusing on a character such as Tatum establishes that Ace in the Hole is a film meant to be ruthless and mean - something especially unique for the time period in which it was made. In the wrong hands, it could be one of the most unpleasant experiences one could ever sit through - the fact that it is lost as one of Billy Wilder’s “lesser” films in comparison to efforts such as Some Like it Hot, Sunset Boulevard, and Double Indemnity does suggest that it has yet to fully gain the recognition it deserves. However, Wilder does just opposite, and turns this film about mostly unlikable people into one of the most interesting subversions on the rags-to-riches stories. It’s a “small” film, but it is also a film that deserves to stand aside other films of its time and be held in regards as a classic.

4.5/5