--- title: "Ace in the Hole: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/ace-in-the-hole/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/ace-in-the-hole" critics_score: 77 critics_reviews: 14 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Ace in the Hole (1951): what the critics said Critics' score 77 from 14 reviews: 12 positive, 0 mixed, 2 negative. Most critics praise Ace in the Hole as a caustic media satire whose account of sensationalism and public appetite for suffering remains relevant. Praise centres on Kirk Douglas’s ruthless reporter, with Wilder’s economical direction and sharp writing also drawing approval. The reviews repeatedly stress that the blame extends beyond corrupt journalism to the crowds consuming it. Several find bitter humour in that bleak view of human behaviour. The spread is wide despite twelve of the fourteen reviews being positive, and the two dissenters both write in 1951. The New York Times acknowledges the performances and the force of the crowd scenes but finds the plot’s assumptions implausible. The New Yorker goes further, rejecting the reporter’s characterisation, the dialogue and the mixture of satire and melodrama. The central disagreement is over credibility: most critics value the film’s severity, while its detractors find that its exaggerations weaken the drama. ## Time Out — David Fear Rating 5/5. 25 July 2007. Wilder’s acidic media satire was ahead of its time and remains a blistering indictment of tabloid infotainment and human cynicism. The review highlights the film’s flaying of the fourth estate and its enduring relevance. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/ace-in-the-hole) ## The AV Club — Nathan Rabin Rating A. 18 July 2007. The critic calls the film a lost masterpiece whose unflinching darkness about media exploitation was ahead of its time. Douglas's ruthless journalist and Sterling's bitter wife are singled out as key to its guilty laughs and prescient bite. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/ace-in-the-hole-1798202800) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 12 August 2007. The film offers an unflinching portrait of rotten journalism and the public’s appetite for sensational stories, with no one escaping blame. It singles out the lean, economical direction and Kirk Douglas’s ferocious lead performance for particular praise. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-ace-in-the-hole-1951) ## Slant Magazine — Ed Gonzalez Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 19 January 2004. The review presents the film as an unsung masterpiece about greed and moral irresponsibility in the media and public. It singles out the way the escalating carnival outside the cave mirrors the trapped man's suffering and the story's lasting relevance to tabloid culture. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/ace-in-the-hole/) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 16 October 2024. The critic calls the film a strikingly relevant and cyclonically witty media satire that still stands the test of time, praising its sharp dialogue, cynical take on sensationalism, and how it shows stories spiralling out of control with public complicity. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/oct/16/ace-in-the-hole-movie-kirk-douglas-billy-wilder-movie-where-to-watch) ## Empire — David Parkinson Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 23 March 2006. The review presents Ace in the Hole as a neglected classic whose exposure of the underside of celebrity culture has only grown more relevant over time. It singles out Kirk Douglas's chillingly superb performance as the manipulative reporter. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/ace-hole-review/) ## Little White Lies — Thomas Hobbs Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 12 June 2021. The film is a prescient warning about media manipulation and the bending of journalistic norms that has only grown more relevant over decades. It singles out Kirk Douglas’s career-best turn as the opportunistic reporter for particular praise. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/in-praise-of/ace-in-the-hole-billy-wider-post-truth-era) ## Variety — Variety Staff Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1950. The grim story of an unscrupulous reporter winning brief fame at a victim’s expense is graphically unfolded. It singles out the fine performances, especially Douglas as the heel reporter, and Wilder’s direction capturing morbid expectancy. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1950/film/reviews/ace-in-the-hole-1200417018/) ## The New York Times — Bosley Crowther Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 30 June 1951. The sordid and cynical drama delivers stinging impact through its portrait of a corrupt reporter exploiting a disaster, but the plot relies on naïve and absurd assumptions that weaken it as drama. It singles out the vivid depiction of mob morbidity and strong performances for notice while faulting the overall construction. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1951/06/30/archives/the-screen-in-review-ace-in-the-hole-billy-wilder-special-with-kirk.html) ## The New Yorker — John McCarten Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 30 June 1951. The picture is a compound of unjelled satire, halfbaked melodrama, and dialogue lacking wit. It singles out the preposterous characterization of the reporter and the film’s overall foolishness for complaint. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1951/07/07/1951-07-07-035-tny-cards-000040014) ## The Playlist — The Playlist Staff Rating [A]. 27 March 2012. The critic praises the film as one of Wilder’s top-tier pictures, a scathing examination of how news is made centered on an amoral journalist’s ruthless ambition. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/the-films-of-billy-wilder-a-retrospective-20120327/3/) ## Collider — Cathal McGuinness Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 11 August 2024. The critic highlights the film's sharp, scathing take on media sensationalism and the exploitation of tragedy, noting its modern relevance in a 'fake news' era. It praises the bitter, pessimistic view of human nature and journalism while acknowledging its initial commercial and critical failure before later acclaim. [Read the review](https://collider.com/ace-in-the-hole-kirk-douglas/) ## /Film — Joe Garza Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 28 July 2022. The critic highlights the film’s biting critique of media manipulation and sensationalism, noting that its themes remain relevant through Wilder’s sharp direction and writing. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/944241/the-14-best-billy-wilder-movies-ranked/) ## The Skinny — Lewis Porteous Rating ★★★★. 25 April 2014. The critic calls the film the purest expression of Billy Wilder's caustic vision and praises its savage attack on an unscrupulous and corrupt press. Kirk Douglas's performance as the fallen newspaperman is highlighted as electric. [Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/dvd-reviews/ace-in-the-hole) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/ace-in-the-hole.md