Ace in the Hole

Alphabetical Listing of Movie Reviews

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z


  • Ace in the Hole -- Cynical reporter (Kirk Douglas) parlays the local story of a man trapped in a New Mexico cave into a national news event by getting a corrupt sheriff to delay the weakening victim's rescue for a week. Director Billy Wilder's dark study of media manipulation and the public's appetite for sensationalism has few characters with any integrity, save the reporter's editor (Porter Hall), the tragic victim and his devoted parents. Continuing menace and unsavory characters. (A-II) (br) (1951)




    These movies have been evaluated for artistic merit and moral suitability by the media reviewing division of Catholic News Service. The reviews include the CNS rating, the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a brief synopsis of the movie.

    The classifications are as follows:

    A-I -- general patronage;
    A-II -- adults and adolescents;
    A-III -- adults;
    L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
    O -- morally offensive.

    Note: Some movies previously were designated A-IV. Older films with this classification should be regarded as classified L.

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