After the success of Grand Hotel in 1932, it was nearly three decades before a hotel was the center of a movie. Although the word, hotel, isn't in this film, "A Hole in the Head" broke the ice for setting stories in and around a hotel. Shortly after this film, Arthur Hailey wrote a novel, "Hotel." His 1965 book was a best seller and led to a movie by the same name in 1967. It starred Rod Taylor and a bevy of stars of the day and recent past. Other movies about or set in hotels would follow over the years and a five-season TV series by the same name ran from 1983-1988. It starred James Brolin.
"A Hole in the Head" is set in Miami, where Frank Sinatra's Tony Manetta is struggling to keep his small hotel afloat. Manetta has a 12-year-old son whom he is trying to raise in the hotel, while juggling other interests, including a less than-serious lifestyle. Other prominent performers on the cast give this film some lift. Most notable are Edward G. Robinson, Keenan Wynn and Thelma Ritter. But the plot and Tony's blasé lifestyle and persona don't give the story a level of interest that other hotel stories provide. They are based more on clients and how the hotel manager and staff solve their problems.
This movie did win one Oscar for best original song. Sinatra sings the debut performance of "High Hopes" that was written by Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen. Besides winning the Oscar, the song went on to be a popular radio and jukebox tune. Several big name entertainers recorded it through the 1960s and later. "High Hopes" is clearly the best thing about this movie.
"A Hole in the Head" is set in Miami, where Frank Sinatra's Tony Manetta is struggling to keep his small hotel afloat. Manetta has a 12-year-old son whom he is trying to raise in the hotel, while juggling other interests, including a less than-serious lifestyle. Other prominent performers on the cast give this film some lift. Most notable are Edward G. Robinson, Keenan Wynn and Thelma Ritter. But the plot and Tony's blasé lifestyle and persona don't give the story a level of interest that other hotel stories provide. They are based more on clients and how the hotel manager and staff solve their problems.
This movie did win one Oscar for best original song. Sinatra sings the debut performance of "High Hopes" that was written by Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen. Besides winning the Oscar, the song went on to be a popular radio and jukebox tune. Several big name entertainers recorded it through the 1960s and later. "High Hopes" is clearly the best thing about this movie.