The Hustler, then and now
I first saw this many years ago and loved it, simply because I loved playing pool, though I was in no way a hustler. I thought Paul Newman overacted a lot of his scenes, but then he did that early in his career. I still thought it was a good film.
I just watched it again, streaming on Hulu, and came away with some different impressions. First, my estimation of Newman's acting ability rose a few notches. I thought he did a very good job, though not quite enough for the Oscar. Second, I noticed on this viewing the use of silence between the characters, especially between Fats and Eddie during their games, and between Eddie and Sarah at various times, at the beginning when they're feeling each other out, and later when she confronts him with her sorrow that he'll leave her, baring her soul for him. I came away very much impressed on this second viewing, raising my score from about a 7.9 to an 8.5.