Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

When this was recently shown on cable, the host said that Andy Griffith threw himself so totally into the role that the nastiness impacted his personal life; when filming was completed, he purportedly told his family that he would never do a role like it again. He never did. He went on to endear himself to millions on The Andy Griffith Show and Matlock-- the folksy but wise nice guy. While I was watching A Face In The Crowd for the first time (it took me until age 40 before I discovered this film), I felt numbed, my emotions felt...BLASTED. I told my husband that I didn't think I could ever watch Matlock again-- how could this towering terror have "sold out" by playing the nice guy the rest of his life? How DARE he deprive his audience of the power he so obviously was able to bring to the screen? I was perplexed, even angry-- what happened? Now that I've heard the story of why his career took the path it did, I can watch his other work, smile, and appreciate it all the more. Because it's OK; they caught lightning in a bottle with this one. Most actors go their entire lives without leaving this kind of legacy. I'd never seen Patricia Neal play her emotions this raw, either. The HOWL she lets out when she throws herself across the console to keep Rhodes on the air...Kazan had a way of really wringing his actors. I won't go into any synopsis or further analysis; other reviewers have done just fine on that count. However, I am dumbfounded that this film is NOT on DVD, was NOT nominated for a single Academy Award; while I suppose the latter can be explained away by the politics of the times, it doesn't explain why Wiley and Bona's otherwise exhaustive tome "Inside Oscar" doesn't even MENTION the film as having made an impact. We were paranoid, yes, and we were cautious then (what goes around,comes around,huh?), but were audiences and critics also deaf, dumb, and blind? I intend to do further research on that note; this film is not likely to leave my psyche soon.