7. The Color of Money
And if bowling being considered a sport gets your balls in a twist, then what must pool do to them? Though I love The Hustler, I have chosen the sequel as my favoured film. Paul Newman reprised the role of Fast Eddie Felson, twenty-five years after The Hustler to play an older, wiser, crotchety but equally addicted to gambling and winning as his younger self. He takes young upstart Vincent who has a cannon for an arm on the road with girlfriend Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (the person with the most syllables in her name to be nominated for an Oscar for this role) to hustle their way to the big tournament in Vegas. Scorsese has famously said, I dont get sports, and thats clear once more with this film, as the concentration he pays to the game of pool is minimal. While the scenes are beautifully shot, each unique to reflect the mindset of the characters, his main focus is always on the characters, who clash wonderfully. Newman controls the film from start to finish, stealing the show (still debatable whether he deserved the Oscar as Bob Hoskins won every other award on the planet for the outstanding Mona Lisa), While Cruises wild, rebellious Vincent is the perfect yang to bring out the best and worst of the man who once locked horns with Minnesota Fats and lived to tell the tale.