A Face in the Crowd (1957)
Average Rating: 7.7/10
Reviews Counted: 23
Fresh: 21 | Rotten: 2
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 4
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 1
liked it
Average Rating: 4.2/5
User Ratings: 4,575
My Rating
Movie Info
Andy Griffith makes a spectacular film debut in this searing drama as Lonesome Rhodes, a philosophical country-western singer discovered in a tanktown jail by radio talent scout Patricia Neal and her assistant Walter Matthau. They decide that Rhodes is worthy of a radio spot, but the unforeseen result is that the gangly, aw-shucks entertainer becomes an overnight sensation not simply on radio but, thereafter, on television. As he ascends to stardom, Rhodes attracts fans, sponsors and
May 28, 1957 Wide
May 10, 2005
WARNER BROTHERS PICTURES
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Cast
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Andy Griffith
Lonesome Rhodes -
Patricia Neal
Marcia Jeffries -
Anthony Franciosa
Joey Kiely -
Walter Matthau
Mel Miller -
Lee Remick
Betty Lou Fleckum -
Kay Medford
First Mrs. Rhodes -
Rod Brasfield
Beanie -
Charles Irving
Mr. Luffler -
Howard I. Smith
J.B. Jeffries -
Paul McGrath
Macey -
Alexander Kirkland
Jim Collier -
Big Jeff Bess
Sheriff Hosmer -
Henry Sharp
Abe Steiner -
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Kim Chan
Radio Announcer -
Faye Emerson
Herself -
Betty Furness
Herself -
Virginia Graham
Herself -
Burl Ives
Himself -
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John Cameron Swayze
Himself -
Mike Wallace
Himself -
Percy Waram
Col. Hollister -
Walter Winchell
Himself -
Marshall Neilan
Senator Fuller -
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Sandra Wirth
baton twirler -
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All Critics (24) | Top Critics (5) | Fresh (22) | Rotten (2) | DVD (2)
A Face in the Crowd has never ceased to be relevant.
Top CriticWhat starts out as a seemingly liberal tract rapidly becomes a smug, cynical exercise in misanthropy.
This sizzling and cynical exposure... also presents Andy Griffith as the key figure in his first screen role.
Andy Griffith, as a hick radio star modeled on Arthur Godfrey, delivers an astonishing, sinister performance in Elia Kazan's 1957 essay on media demagoguery.
A fascinating early look at the unholy alliance between politics and entertainment, the corporations controlling it all. With Griffith's wild performance, even though the film has its flaws, it's worth viewing.
Another fruitful collaboartion between Kazan and Budd Schulberg (On the Waterfront), a poignant film about celebrity, the mass media, and the political process.
It's a biting 'rise and fall' satire, sending out a warning to watch out for legends created on the boob tube.
A raw, penetrating, and terrifying portrait of humanity.
In 1957 it was prescient; today it's a textbook chapter on how the television medium has shaped our lives.
...an important cautionary tale for all of us not take everything we see and hear at face value.
Next time you feel like you're getting fooled again by a demagogue, rent this movie and get centered
Didactic but highly effective little black comedy from the folks who gave you 'On the Waterfront.' Andy Griffith is downright scary.
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.
The first half of A Face in the Crowd is genuinely intriguing and competently handled by Kazan, but it quickly degenerates into moralizing diatribe.
Audience Reviews for A Face in the Crowd
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Latest News on A Face in the Crowd
July 3, 2012:
Andy Griffith: 1926-2012The TV icon, director, film star, singer, and writer has passed away at the age of 86.
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Foreign Titles
- A Face in the Crowd (1957) (DE)
- A Face in the Crowd (1957) (UK)
