Scott captures the complexity of his satanic power and human weaknesses, the gambler's professional lust for money is only a part of a syndrome of illusory symbols of identity: lust for power in its own right, power over another human being as an object of one's ego; sexual lust on the same terms of domination and destruction-sadistic and perverse, rising from sexual insecurity and ending in sexual failure
"(Casty, 1967, p. 8).
In this movie Paul Newman became a leading man as he took the role of Fast Eddie and made us feel all the pain and suffering that his character was going through. He plays the confident and cocky pool hustler who feels like he can conquer the world with the little smirk here and there to make you feel like he knows something we do not. When Eddie plays Minnesota Fats the first time we see the full range of the character as we see him admire the skill of the other player when he says, "He is great! Geez, that old Fat Man. Look at the way he moves, like a dancer.And those fingers, them chubby fingers. And that stroke, it's like he's uh, like he's playin' a violin or somethin'."("AMC," n.d., p. 1) Then we watch as Fast Eddie takes a big lead and then starts drinking and acting all cocky. We see him sink deeper and deeper and want to reach into the screen and grab him and tell him to stop drinking and he will win the game. The director does a great job of showing how call Minnesota Fats is and how he keep control of himself and allows Fast Eddie to beat himself.
Jackie Gleason is fabulous in the roll of Minnesota Fats. His character does not have many lines but he is a presence on the screen that dominates almost every scene he is in. He sits on a stool looking like a bored king sitting on his throne as another threat to his place comes in for a challenge. He does not play with his own money and no longer need to hustle money because he is the best and will always have challenger wanting to take their shot at the champ.