Drew Turney
The film that spelled the breakout of a sincere new talent. There was always a good actor inside Tom Cruise struggling to get out, and as soon as he got over the little boy fantasy roles as racing car drivers, fighter pilots and bartenders he was bound for good rather than just big things.
Scorsese gave him his first chance as cocky snooker player Vince who meets up with Newman’s aging hustler in this unofficial sequel to ”The Hustler”.
Cruise plays his swagger up to the max, clearly setting himself up for the fall and believing every minute of it. I remember saying to a friend of mine at the time how honoured he must have felt to be working with such a legend. He thought Newman should be excited to be working with Cruise.
Eddie finds Vince hamming it up in a local pool hall, and he sees a natural – albeit green – player, convincing Vince to come on the road with him and ply his old trade, with Vince’s girlfriend Carmen (Mastrontonio).
On the way they both learn about honesty, the con, and how far they’ll go for both those qualities and skills, and while the story isn’t anything out of the ordinary, you’re watching it being played out in the hands of two masters of the acting craft.
Blu-ray details/extras : Don’t throw away your DVD copy just yet, not while this dreadfully-looking Blu-ray transfer is the next best thing on offer. Yes, it’s a step up from the DVD – but not by much. Audio-wise, it fares a bit better, but many would prefer a disc that doesn’t encompass more grain than a bowl of cereal, and one you don’t actually need to shine a torch onto the screen to see at times. Woeful, Disney.
Despite being marketed as a “25th Anniversary Edition”, the only ‘Color of Money’ bonuses include trailers for other films.
