I know I said this would come out on Sunday, but my blogspot account was acting funny and I’ve been delayed for other reasons. I was also going to start this with a different film, but since today is Clint Eastwood’s 81st birthday, I decided to celebrate it by reviewing my favorite film of his, Unforgiven. Enjoy…
The story of Unforgiven begins with the brutal cutting of a prostitute in Big Whiskey, Wyoming.
The men responsible are held for their crimes, but the sheriff (played by the always terrific Gene Hackman), goes rather light on the punishment. This angers the prostitutes and they set a $1,00 reward for anyone who can kill them.
It is then we are introduced to William Munny (Mr. Eastwood), a former gunslinger turned farmer and single father (wife died before the film began). He is asked by a young kid (Jaimz Woolvett) to help him claim the reward. The boy says his name is the Scholfield Kid, and he brings a lot of clout (though we never really learn his real name), but as the film goes on we learn more about him that may question his tales. At first, Munny is reluctant, but after seeing what the money could do for his family, he rides off, and recruits Ned Logan (Morgan Freeman), to help take down these wrongdoers.
The sheriff, however, doesn’t like this plan and will do anything in his power to keep people from coming. This includes the horrible beating of a gunfighter, English Bob (Richard Harris, better known as the first Dumbledore) in broad daylight right in front of everyone in town. The women begin to lose hope. Can Munny bring justice when the justice itself is so corrupt as is? Will our three heroes complete this mission without having any bad repercussions? Can we have hope in having multiple scenes exemplifying why Clint Eastwood is such a badass?
The film won 4 Academy Awards, including Best Director and Picture, both for Eastwood (he would latter repeat this in 2004 with Million Dollar Baby). In my mind, this is arguably his best work, and definitely ranks as one of my favorite films of all time. The cast is brilliant all around, particularly Eastwood and Hackman (who won an Oscar for his role). Their scenes are filled with such tension and suspense that you could down right pass out they are an awesome pair. The writing is superb; it gives the Western a noire-feel we don’t get much of in such a genre, and its rather welcomed.
What sets this apart though is the direction, which is rather top notch. Clint Eastwood takes his time with each shot, giving us the raw emotions of the characters in each scene. He gives everyone a chance to grow and express him or herself, without weighing the film down or destroying the pace. This is one of the best-paced films I have seen, and we can also thank the editor Joel Cox (who won the other Oscar), for his assisting Clint with the pacing, it’s really terrific.
Clint Eastwood is a man I say can do no wrong. He has made missteps in his career, but honestly you can say that about anyone. With Clint Eastwood, any missteps are easily forgiven, because he has a film repertoire that includes such classics as Unforgiven. I implore anyone who is reading this, if you haven’t watched it yet, go watch it, you will not regret this
Unforgiven’s Critical Grade: A+
Note: I have made a rule to only give an A+ to films that have Sam Neil in it, but I shall make an exception for such a film as this.
