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MOVIES / ON DVD / A FACE IN THE CROWD
A Face in the Crowd

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A Face in the Crowd (1957)

90%
33%
75%
N/A
N/A
N/A
90 %
Reviews Counted: 21 Fresh: 19  Rotten:2 Average Rating: 7.8/10

How does the Tomatometer work?

The Tomatometer measures the percentage of positive reviews from Approved Tomatometer Critics for a certain movie.[-]

Runtime: 2 hrs 6 mins

Synopsis: A savagely funny look at the way sudden notoriety and power corrupt. A small-town windbag (Griffith in his film debut) becomes an overnight success when the TV show created for him by network and advertising execs hits the top of the ratings. But behind the scenes he turns out to be a vindictive... A savagely funny look at the way sudden notoriety and power corrupt. A small-town windbag (Griffith in his film debut) becomes an overnight success when the TV show created for him by network and advertising execs hits the top of the ratings. But behind the scenes he turns out to be a vindictive monster, and the reporter who brought him out of the woods determines to expose him. Based on the short story "The Arkansas Traveler" by Schulburg, who also wrote the script. [More]

Genre: Dramas

Starring: Andy Griffith, Lee Remick, Walter Matthau, Patricia Neal, Anthony Franciosa

Director: Elia Kazan
Producer: Elia Kazan
Screenwriter: Budd Schulberg

DVD Info

Release:

Oct 5, 2005

[DVD Details]
  • Discovered by Marcia Jeffries, Larry "Lonesome" Rhodes is a homespun hobo who's about to become famous. But, as usual, more fame leads to more power and more power leads to more corruption. The film also features many celebrities appearing as themselves (Burl Ives, Mike Wallace, Betty Furness, Bennett Cerf, Faye Emerson, Walter Winchell, and others).
  • Source: Warner Home Video
  • Reviews

     
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    1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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    Ratings Image
    N/A

    What starts out as a seemingly liberal tract rapidly becomes a smug, cynical exercise in misanthropy.

    Full Review | comment Comment
    01/26/06
    Geoff Andrew
    Time Out
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic
    Ratings Image
    N/A

    The first half of A Face in the Crowd is genuinely intriguing and competently handled by Kazan, but it quickly degenerates into moralizing diatribe.

    Full Review | comment Comment
    05/24/03
    Channel 4 Film
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic
    Ratings Image
    N/A

    A Face in the Crowd has never ceased to be relevant.

    Full Review | comment Comment
    02/27/08
    J. Hoberman
    Village Voice
    Ratings Image
    B

    It's a biting 'rise and fall' satire, sending out a warning to watch out for legends created on the boob tube.

    Full Review | comment Comment
    11/29/07
    Dennis Schwartz
    Ozus' World Movie Reviews
    Ratings Image
    4/4

    A raw, penetrating, and terrifying portrait of humanity.

    Full Review | comment Comment
    11/01/07
    TV Guide's Movie Guide
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    12/12/06
    Cole Smithey
    ColeSmithey.com
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    06/29/05
    Emanuel Levy
    EmanuelLevy.Com
    Ratings Image
    7/10

    ...an important cautionary tale for all of us not take everything we see and hear at face value.

    Full Review | comment Comment
    05/15/05
    John J. Puccio
    DVDTown.com
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    Next time you feel like you're getting fooled again by a demagogue, rent this movie and get centered

    Full Review | comment Comment
    05/13/05
    David Bezanson
    Filmcritic.com
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    04/28/05
    Thomas Delapa
    Boulder Weekly
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    Didactic but highly effective little black comedy from the folks who gave you 'On the Waterfront.' Andy Griffith is downright scary.

    comment Comment
    12/31/04
    Dan Lybarger
    Nitrate Online
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    01/30/04
    Daniel M. Kimmel
    Worcester Telegram & Gazette
    Ratings Image
    4.5/5

    The remarkable thing about A Face in the Crowd is the way in which this 50-year-old film only seems to become only more relevant with the passing of time.

    Full Review | comment Comment
    11/20/03
    Ken Hanke
    Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
    Ratings Image
    5/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    10/31/03
    Carol Cling
    Las Vegas Review-Journal
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    This sizzling and cynical exposure... also presents Andy Griffith as the key figure in his first screen role.

    Full Review | comment Comment
    05/20/03
    Bosley Crowther
    New York Times
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic
    Ratings Image
    5/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    12/31/02
    Robert Roten
    Laramie Movie Scope
    Ratings Image
    5/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    12/19/02
    Josh Gilchrist
    Billings Outpost (Montana)
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    10/15/02
    Philip Martin
    Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    A little overdone, but Neal and Remick are brilliant.

    comment Comment
    08/01/02
    Nell Minow
    Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies
    Ratings Image
    4/5

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    07/26/02
    Jeffrey Westhoff
    Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)
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