 All the King 's Men ( 1949 ) was based on the novel of the same name by Robert Penn Warren , which in turn was based on the career of the Louisiana politician Huey Long . Rossen introduced a new concept , that the defenders of the ordinary people can in turn become the new exploiters . As a requirement for his participation in the film , Rossen had to write to Columbia 's Harry Cohn saying that he was no longer a Communist Party member . Cohn 's critiques of the draft of Rossen 's script included scrapping a framing structure that was difficult for audiences to follow and several improvements in the relationships and motivations of characters . A meeting of the Communist Party in Los Angeles severely criticized the film , and Rossen severed all relations with the Party . All the King 's Men won the Academy Award for Best Picture , Broderick Crawford won the award for Best Actor and Mercedes McCambridge was honored as Best Supporting Actress . Rossen was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director but lost to Joseph L. Mankiewicz for A Letter to Three Wives . Rossen won a Golden Globe for Best Director and the film won the Golden Globe for Best Picture . His next film , The Brave Bulls , was directed in 1950 and released in 1951 . This was Rossen 's last work before the studios blacklisted him . New York Times critic Bosley Crowther called this " the best film on bull @-@ fighting yet . " 
