The Color of Money
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The Color of Money was a 1984 novel by American writer Walter Tevis, continuing the story of Fast Eddie Felson from The Hustler (1959). Felson is no longer a pool player, but becomes mentor to a younger, flashier version of himself.
It was adapted into a 1986 film of the same name, with Paul Newman reprising his role from the movie version of The Hustler. The film also stars Tom Cruise as Vincent, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio as Carmen, Helen Shaver as Janelle and John Turturro as Julian. The movie was adapted by Richard Price from the novel, and was directed by Martin Scorsese. It was given an 'R' rating by the MPAA.
The movie won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Paul Newman) and was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), Best Art Direction-Set Decoration and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.
Director Scorsese performed the opening voiceover (uncredited), describing the game of 9-ball. Many top pool players of the 1980s were members of the cast. Some include: Steve Mizerak, Jimmy Mataya, and Keith McCready. Another notable cameo is that of Iggy Pop who plays one of the many contenders who lose to Vincent.
Newman said that the best advice he was given by Director Scorcese was "Try not to be funny."
Cruise performed most of the trick shots himself using a Joss N-7 custom-made cue (not a Meucci as many believe). An exception was a trick shot where Vincent was to jump two balls to sink another. Scorsese didn't mind letting Cruise learn the shot, but he said it would have cost too much and would have taken two days to film. Thus, the shot was performed for him by professional player Mike Sigel.
John Carmack of id Software, one of the authors of the computer game Doom, stated that the title of the game was inspired by Vincent's response when asked what he carried in his cue-case: "Doom."
The movie has positively influenced the popularity of the game of pool.
