BEST PAUL NEWMAN MOVIES
“Somebody Up There Likes Me” (1956): Newman made a big leap into stardom in the story of boxer Rocky Graziano.
“The Long, Hot Summer” (1958): An ideally cast Newman plays Ben Quick, a reputed troublemaker who gets a mixed reception in his new locale, in this William Faulkner tale.
“Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” (1958): Newman makes a first-rate Brick to Elizabeth Taylor’s Maggie in the Tennessee Williams play.
“The Hustler” (1961): One of Newman’s most memorable roles is “Fast” Eddie Felson, a pool-playing upstart who wants to take on the legendary Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason).
“Hud” (1963): Called “the man with the barbed-wire soul” in ads, Newman’s character in this excellent drama is a rancher’s (Melvyn Douglas) rebellious, amoral son. The film will be presented Wednesday, May 8, on Turner Classic Movies as part of the month’s “First Name Basis” series of films with single-name titles.
“Torn Curtain” (1966): This Alfred Hitchcock-directed spy story involves Newman in a brutal kitchen scene. Trust us, you’ll know it when you see it.
“Cool Hand Luke” (1967): An outstanding Newman plays an independent-minded convict who shows “a failure to communicate.”
“Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” (1969): Newman and Robert Redford had their first teaming as the title outlaws who, at least here, stage robberies with a humorous spirit.
“The Sting” (1973): The reunited Newman and Robert Redford are great in this best picture Oscar winner as Depression-era con men out to even a score with a tough gangster (Robert Shaw).
“The Towering Inferno” (1974): Though he faces more immediate peril than any architect hopefully would, Newman makes a fine action hero in producer Irwin Allen’s disaster epic about a fire in the world’s tallest building. “Absence of Malice” (1981): Newman is in top form as a mobster’s grandson seeking justice after a newspaper article wrongly suggests he’s involved in illegal dealings. “The Verdict” (1982): In what many deem his careerbest performance, Newman plays a down-on-his-luck Boston lawyer seeking redemption via a case against the Catholic Church.
“The Color of Money” (1986): Newman won an Oscar for reprising his “Hustler” role as Eddie Felson, now the mentor to a younger pool shark (Tom Cruise).