Review of Unforgiven, The

Introduction

When I get a copy of an older movie to review that I`ve not seen before, I like to pull out the film books and check out a bit of the background. This classic John Huston western, not to be confused with Clint Eastwoods `Unforgiven`, comes from the same stable as `The Searchers` in that it also based on a story by Alan LeMay, but thematically too, dealing with similar issues in similar ways.
Word has it that Hecht, Hill, Lancaster (Burt Lancaster`s production company) originally hired Director Delbert Mann to create a gritty, true to life reflection of life on the frontier, rather than standard glossy Hollywood fayre. When plans to include Kirk Douglas alongside Lancaster created impossible strains on the original plot, Mann was dropped and John Huston took over Directorial duties.
But the film was half-cursed from the outset with commercial imperatives continually eroding Huston`s plans to tackle serious issues. He headed off into the sunset during Post-production and never had a good word to say about the movie again. Add to that Hepburn falling from a bolting horse and sustaining serious injuries causing delays to shooting barely equalled until Gilliam`s try at Don Quixote (see `Lost in La Mancha`) and you have a recipe for disaster. But the results are not as bad as all that. In fact, it`s a damn fine movie in my view, despite the luke warm appraisal it gets in my `Western` reference book. A lantern-jawed Burt Lancaster is perfectly cast as Ben Zachary, and Audrey Hepburn turns in a surprisingly spirited performance as his `sister`. Lillian Gish is also strangely compelling as the Mother - some 50 years after her original screen debut.

The plot is essentially about racial intolerance - with Audrey Hepburn as the rescued Indian baby adopted by the loving white mother (Matthilda) at the helm of the Zachary clan. This is a darkly held secret (whites and `injuns` don`t mix in this wildest of wests!) until a sinister ex-Cavalry soldier emerges (literally) out of the dust storms to let the cat out of the bag. The results are predictably incendiary - with the Indian tribes demanding their squaw is returned to her rightful home, whilst the `white` community refuse to have an Indian-blooded female in their midst. It seems only Ben Zachary is prepared to stand and fight on principal, and the film culminates in a brutal assault on their homestead that must have provided useful filmic tips for movies like `Assault on Precinct 13` and `Straw Dogs`. Exciting stuff! The movie also has humour (check out brother Cash`s reaction to a girl`s advances for marriage. `I might be drunk - but I`m not that drunk!`) romance (Hepburn and Lancaster are brimming with suppressed admiration for each other from the outset) and melodrama too. Even the steadfastly `anti-Western` fraternity will find that this is a riveting watch.This a movie that must be viewed as wide-screen, with the exterior scenes (which make up the bulk of this movie) all shot on parched Mexican plains creating an authentic frontier atmosphere to the that is both brutally frugal yet visually rich.

Video

This is a fine print that does justice to the broad and spectacular views that are a feature of this movie. The colour hues are rich and contrast is high which puts the film firmly in the late `50`s stylistically.

Audio

Generally acceptable, which means that the original soundtrack was probably not 100% perfect from the outset. There are moments of distinct muddiness and on a subjective note, Dimitri Tiompkins` score sounds like it was produced for another movie and is positively anomalous on occasion, setting a different tone and atmosphere to the one we seem to be enjoying.

Features

Menu and original trailer only, plus some language and subtitle options.

Conclusion

This melodramatic pot-boiler of a western is a distant relative to the standard `shoot `em up` variety from the same period. Thematically, it attempts to tackle some serious issues (principally, the destructive force of racism) yet falls far short of this goal. However, it delivers on a number of other counts, not least the sheer excitement of it`s concluding chapters. It`s a visual feast too, in Panavision widescreen, and there are some fine performances from an excellent cast. Whilst a real treat for fans of movies like `The Searchers` (with which it shares many of the same themes and narratives), it will also provide a thoroughly decent evenings entertainment for anyone else who happens to be in the room at the time.