Even now, more than 60 years later, this 1950s Elia Kazan-directed movie can still serve as a warning about the media’s dangerous influence and the pursuit of power. The film follows the story of a reporter (Patricia Neal) who turns a drifter, played by Andy Griffith, in a raw and rare dramatic role, into a media star during television’s first decade. Chris Vognar, special contributor to The Dallas Morning News, wrote of Andy Griffith’s Larry “Lonesome” Rhodes, as “…[an] opportunistic hillbilly who develops a thirst for power and a serious cult of personality.” Rhodes morphs from a backward product pitchman into a wealthy political kingmaker, destroying lives along the way. The film’s themes—megalomania, cynical populism, media manipulation, and the toxic brew of money and politics—keep it alarmingly topical and topically alarming. Rotten Tomatoes: 88%