The Cincinnati Kid (1965)

Director:

Norman Jewison

Writers:

Richard Jessup (novel)
Ring Lardner Jr. (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

15 October 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

A RAMBLING - GAMBLING MAN ... ! !

Plot:

An up-and-coming poker player tries to prove himself in a high-stakes match against a long-time master of the game.

Plot Keywords:

Poker | Poker Player | 1930s | Stud Poker | Cemetery

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 2 wins

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Steve McQueen	...	The Cincinnati Kid
Edward G. Robinson	...	Lancey Howard
Ann-Margret	...	Melba
Karl Malden	...	Shooter
Tuesday Weld	...	Christian
Joan Blondell	...	Lady Fingers
Rip Torn	...	Slade
Jack Weston	...	Pig
Cab Calloway	...	Yeller
Jeff Corey	...	Hoban
Theodore Marcuse	...	Felix (as Theo Marcuse)
Milton Selzer	...	Sokal
Karl Swenson	...	Mr. Rudd
Émile Genest	...	Cajun (as Emile Genest)
Ron Soble	...	Danny

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Australia:PG | Iceland:L | UK:AA (original rating) | UK:PG (re-rating) (1993) | Germany:12 | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Director Sam Peckinpah insisted on shooting a nude scene for this film featuring one of the female extras. He claimed that this scene would only be included in the European release of the movie. Producer Martin Ransohoff eventually fired Peckinpah after it was discovered that Peckinpah intended using the nude scene in the US print as well.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: When "Shooter" (Karl Malden) is dealing cards in the 5-card stud game rather than dealing the first card to the player to his left (Edward G. Robinson) it appears that he skips him and deals the first card to the player to his left. This is in fact normal practice for card tables to "rotate deal" so that every player gets a chance to be the first to bet. It is the job of the dealer to keep track of the positions, and that is why it is common to have a "dealer button" that passes to the left.

Quotes:

[Slade blackmails Shooter into cheating on his dealing so the Kid will beat Howard]
Shooter: Hey, why are you doing this? It can't be for money.
Slade: Yes, for my kind of money, gut money. I wanta to see that smug old bastard gutted. Gutted!
Shooter: Like he gutted you.
Slade: Yes, that's right, that's right!

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Du xia da zhan Lasi Weijiasi (1999)

Soundtrack:

The Cincinnati Kid

Song More Memorable Than The Story

Well, I've always enjoyed poker; Steve McQueen and Edward G. Robinson are two of my all- time favorite actors and I thought Tuesday Weld and Ann-Margaret were two of the most beautiful women in their day.....so why don't I love this movie?

Don't get me wrong: I like it, but I should have liked it a whole lot more. It's a bit too slow, for one thing, becoming more like a soap opera in parts and the movie drags for much too long. The story doesn't have much spark until the poker showdown at the end of the movie. That ending is an excellent one, too, but one has to wait too long to get there.

Robinson is good to watch, as he almost always was in his great acting career. He plays the only classy person in the film.

Watching this late in December of 2009 on some high-def equipment, I discovered how beautifully-filmed this movie appears.

What has stuck with me all these years, since I saw it in the theater in 1965, wasn't the story but the title song by Ray Charles. I have never been able to get "The Cincinnati Kid" song out of my head.