The Hustler is fundamentally a story of what it means to be a human being , couched within the context of winning and losing . Describing the film , Robert Rossen said : " My protagonist , Fast Eddie , wants to become a great pool player , but the film is really about the obstacles he encounters in attempting to fulfill himself as a human being . He attains self @-@ awareness only after a terrible personal tragedy which he has caused — and then he wins his pool game . " Roger Ebert concurs with this assessment , citing The Hustler as " one of the few American movies in which the hero wins by surrendering , by accepting reality instead of his dreams . "