Chuck Tatum is a real prick. No wonder he can't hold down a newspaper job. He's such a narcissist that he calls everyone a "fan"; he's so cold blooded that he wears a jacket out in the New Mexico sun. But also, it seems he's right at every turn - his aggressive antics impress the girl, his arrogant swagger fools the sheriff, his lavish copy spawns a carnival of hanger-ons desperate to see the devastating cave-in he so eloquently colours. But only when his own world crumbles around him does he think to repent. Kirk Douglas draws Tatum fantastically - a man initially so out of place he feels like he's in the wrong movie. Only when he whips up a frenzy around him does he feel at home. It's interesting to see how the anti-hero has changed with the Hays Code - he must clearly be evil and must clearly face his comeuppance, but Wilder is smart enough to know that Tatum isn't all wrong; he DID build it, and they DID come. Nightcrawler owes a good deal to this one.