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The film was also somewhat autobiographical for Rossen , relating to his dealings with the House Un @-@ American Activities Committee . A screenwriter during the 1930s and ' 40s , he had been involved with the Communist Party in the 1930s and refused to name names at his first HUAC appearance . Ultimately he changed his mind and identified friends and colleagues as party members . Similarly , Felson sells his soul and betrays the one person who really knows and loves him in a Faustian pact to gain character .
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Film and theatre historian Ethan Mordden has identified The Hustler as one of a handful of films from the early 1960s that re @-@ defined the relationship of films to their audiences . This new relationship , he writes , is " one of challenge rather than flattery , of doubt rather than certainty . " No film of the 1950s , Mordden asserts , " took such a brutal , clear look at the ego @-@ affirmation of the one @-@ on @-@ one contest , at the inhumanity of the winner or the castrated vulnerability of the loser . " Although some have suggested the resemblance of this film to classic film noir , Mordden rejects the comparison based on Rossen 's ultra @-@ realistic style , also noting that the film lacks noir 's " Treacherous Woman or its relish in discovering crime among the bourgeoisie , hungry bank clerks and lusty wives . " Mordden does note that while Fast Eddie " has a slight fifties ring " , the character " makes a decisive break with the extraordinarily feeling tough guys of the ' rebel ' era ... [ b ] ut he does end up seeking out his emotions " and telling Bert that he is a loser because he 's dead inside .
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The Hustler had its world premiere in Washington , D.C. on September 25 , 1961 . Prior to the premiere , Richard Burton hosted a midnight screening of the film for the casts of the season 's Broadway shows , which generated a great deal of positive word of mouth . Initially reluctant to publicize the film , 20th Century Fox responded by stepping up its promotional activities .
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The film was well received by critics , although with the occasional caveat . Variety praised the performances of the entire main cast but felt that the " sordid aspects " of the story prevented the film from achieving the " goal of being pure entertainment . " Variety also felt the film was far too long . Stanley Kauffmann , writing for The New Republic , concurred in part with this assessment . Kauffmann strongly praised the principal cast , calling Newman " first @-@ rate " and writing that Scott 's was " his most credible performance to date . " Laurie , he writes , gives her part " movingly anguished touches " ( although he also mildly criticizes her for over @-@ reliance on Method acting ) . While he found that the script " strains hard to give an air of menace and criminality to the pool hall " and also declares it " full of pseudo @-@ meaning " , Kauffmann lauds Rossen 's " sure , economical " direction , especially in regard to Gleason who , he says , does not so much act as " [ pose ] for a number of pictures which are well arranged by Rossen . It is the best use of a manikin by a director since Kazan photographed Burl Ives as Big Daddy . " The New York Times , despite finding that the film " strays a bit " and that the romance between Newman and Laurie 's characters " seems a mite far @-@ fetched " , nonetheless found that The Hustler " speaks powerfully in a universal language that spellbinds and reveals bitter truths . "
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The Hustler received nine Academy Award nominations . The film won two , for Best Art Direction @-@ Set Decoration , Black @-@ and @-@ White ( Harry Horner and Gene Callahan ) and Best Cinematography , Black @-@ and @-@ White ( Eugen Schüfftan ) . The film was also nominated for Best Picture and Newman was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role . Gleason and Scott were both nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role ; Scott refused the nomination . Laurie was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role . Rossen received nominations for Best Director and , with Carroll , for Best Writing , Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium .
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Newman was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor . Gleason and Scott were each nominated for Best Supporting Actor and Scott was also nominated as Best New Star of the Year . At the 1962 BAFTA Awards , The Hustler tied with the Soviet film Ballad of a Soldier for Best Film from Any Source . Newman won for Best Foreign Actor and Piper Laurie was nominated for Best Foreign Actress . Gleason was honored as Best Supporting Actor by the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures and the film was named among the Board 's ten best films of 1961 . Rossen was named Best Director by the New York Film Critics Circle Awards and Rossen and Carroll shared the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written Drama .
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In the decades since its release , The Hustler has cemented its reputation as a classic . Roger Ebert , echoing earlier praise for the performances , direction , and cinematography and adding laurels for editor Dede Allen , cites the film as " one of those films where scenes have such psychic weight that they grow in our memories . " He further cites Fast Eddie Felson as one of " only a handful of movie characters so real that the audience refers to them as touchstones . " TV Guide calls the film a " dark stunner " offering " a grim world whose only bright spot is the top of the pool table , yet [ with ] characters [ who ] maintain a shabby nobility and grace . " The four leads are again lavishly praised for their performances and the film is summed up as " not to be missed . "
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Paul Newman reprised his role as Fast Eddie Felson in the 1986 film The Color of Money , for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role . A number of observers and critics have suggested that this Oscar was in belated recognition for his performance in The Hustler . In 1997 , the Library of Congress selected The Hustler for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as " culturally , historically , or aesthetically significant . " Carroll and Rossen 's screenplay was selected by the Writers Guild of America in 2006 as the 96th best motion picture screenplay of all time . In June 2008 , AFI released its " Ten top Ten " — the best ten films in ten " classic " American film genres — after polling over 1 @,@ 500 people from the creative community . The Hustler was acknowledged as the sixth best film in the sports genre .
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The Hustler is credited with sparking a resurgence in the popularity of pool in the United States , which had been on the decline for decades . The film also brought recognition to Willie Mosconi , who , despite having won multiple world championships , was virtually unknown to the general public . Perhaps the greatest beneficiary of the film 's popularity was a real @-@ life pool hustler named Rudolf Wanderone . Mosconi claimed in an interview at the time of the film 's release that the character of Minnesota Fats was based on Wanderone , who at the time was known as " New York Fatty " . Wanderone immediately adopted the Minnesota Fats nickname and parlayed his association with the film into book and television deals and other ventures . Author Walter Tevis denied for the rest of his life that Wanderone had played any role in the creation of the character . Other players would claim , with greater or lesser degrees of credibility , to have served as models for Fast Eddie , including Ronnie Allen , Ed Taylor , Ed Parker , and Eddie Pelkey .
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