Edgar Allan Pooh . . . why the South lost the War Between the States in this 1965 Civil War Centennial piece, THE CINCINNATI KID. Steve McQueen plays the title character here, who grew up at the doorstep to the Confederacy. He heads South to New Orleans, absorbing such Southern values as 1)Try to spend as much time as possible gambling, especially with money you don't have. 2)See if you can pass the rest of the time smoking and guzzling booze. 3)If there's still time to kill, tie razor blades to anything that moves, and force it to fight some other innocent critter to the Death, so that you can gamble on the outcome and potentially make money while getting your sadistic jollies (look again at the close-ups of the lead actors' eyes during the cockfight, which are seen again in the poker finale to this story). 4)Fooling around under the sheets with your best friend's wife always is preferable to sleeping. 5)Don't worry yourself about #1, #2, #3, and #4 causing your woman to leave you, since it's highly unlikely that there's another man in town sober enough to stand upright as an alternative meal ticket to your gracious self. 6)Whenver possible, reenact Pickett's Charge by putting all of your eggs into one basket. 7)If there are any minority people within earshot, be sure to say something to make them feel inferior.

bandw (Spoilers!) Steve McQueen plays Eric Stoner (the Cincinnati Kid), a young professional poker player. The Kid wants to be "the man," i.e. the best player in the country. Currently that person is Lancey Howard (Edward G. Robinson). As soon as you have this setup you know that the movie has to end with a big showdown, and all else is back-story.There is the obligatory romance between Stoner and Christian (Tuesday Weld). I did not find any chemistry between McQueen and Weld; there is little psychological depth to the relationship. Christian's pondering on the "do you love poker more than you love me" theme is exploited, but hardly of any consequence. You know the answer.Some side stories are developed. There is Stoner's friend Shooter (Karl Malden), a player who went up against the man and lost and is now relegated to dealing and just getting by. The relationship between Shooter and is wife Melba (Ann-Margaret) is more interesting than that of Stoner and Christian--they seem so mismatched in age and attractiveness that you want to know more about them. (Spoiler) But everything is just window dressing leading to the final match. Any such match is usually determined by a few crucial hands, or a single one as here. A straight flush comes up in only one hand in 72202 in five card stud, so it's not totally out of the realm of possibility that Howard would get such a hand, but would he make substantial bets on the hope of getting such? A full house comes up once in 694 hands, so the odds of a full house and a straight flush being dealt on the same hand are remote. But there had to be a dramatic climax.The setting is supposed to be 1930s New Orleans, but I thought the period detail was a little weak. McQueen looks more 1960s than 1930s. The opening scene of the parade and a later scene in a jazz bar were the two most enjoyable scenes in the movie for me.After having seen "The Hustler" with its psychological complexity, strong character development, and brilliant performances, I was insulted by "The Cincinnati Kid." Pretty much any of the poker programs on TV are more exciting to watch than the poker seen in this movie. Contemporary viewers will find five card stud particularly lacking in spectator appeal (and player appeal as far as that goes). Five card stud has not been an event in The World Series of Poker since 1974.I am surprised that there was not a sequel to this where Stoner regroups and comes back to beat Howard.

didi-5 Steve McQueen, an underrated actor in his lifetime who was actually quite subtle and gifted as his films now confirm, is an up-and-coming poker player, The Kid, cocky and sure of himself, smitten by Ann Margret's sexy purring miss, and led into the lion's den - a game against Lancey Howard (The Man - a showy and assured performance from Edward G Robinson) - by Shooter, a crooked card sharp (Karl Malden).Mainly a poker film, that's where all the scenes of tension lie. But in McQueen's scenes with Ann Margret, the bad girl, and Tuesday Weld, the good girl, we see a fleeting glimpse of what goes on behind the gambling man's straight face. And I love the ending.A good cast, including Joan Blondell, Rip Torn, and Cab Calloway, a sharp script, good direction and memorable music make The Cincinatti Kid a keeper.

Anthony Pittore III (Shattered_Wake) "The Kid" (Steve McQueen) is the up-and-coming new player in the stud poker world. He travels from game to game, usually with the help of his buddy Shooter (Karl Malden), only to clean out his competition in good form. When Lancey "The Man" Howard comes to town, the Kid and Shooter arrange a high-stakes poker game with some of the best players around to find out who the real king of stud poker is.There have been a number of solid poker movies throughout the years, with the most recent being the Matt Damon vehicle "Rounders," a film which basically spurred the "poker boom" back in the early 2000s (along with donkey Chris Moneymaker's World Series of Poker win in 2003). One poker flick that's never forgotten in the wide array of films in the subgenre is 'The Cincinnati Kid.' The film features one of Steve McQueen's most legendary performances (in a long list of great roles) and puts him alongside such other great actors like Karl Malden, Rip Torn, and oh-so-sexy Ann-Margret.One issue that has come along with this film is that it does feature a LOT of poker, but what really works about the poker scenes is that it's more about the characters than the actual game. The dialogue, the staredowns, and everything else at the table works so well that it never, ever gets boring. Away from the table, there are some terrifically formed bonds between the friendship of Shooter & the Kid, along with the Kid's relations with girlfriend Christian (Tuesday Weld) and Melba (Ann-Margret). Including this additional drama helps to round out the film into something entertaining and interesting for all viewers, whether they be poker fans or not.Overall, while I do, as a poker player and cinema enthusiast, prefer 'Rounders' slightly, 'The Cincinnati Kid' is one of the best films you can find on the subject. It's just a shame that McQueen wasn't around long enough to have a showdown between The Kid and Mike McDermott.Final Verdict: 9/10.-AP3-