Three partners have their patience and sanity tested when
they mine for gold in the mountains of Mexican bandit country. WESTERN
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The Treasure of
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The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is considered one of the greatest adventure films ever made. It was the film that won John Huston his only two Oscars and it has stood the test of time thanks to the timeless, layered performances from Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, and Tim Holt. It's a film about gold, and the madness therein. You see, when it comes to partners, everything is kosher until you strike it rich. Then, the darkness stars whispering to you, and the more attention you give it, the louder it gets. This film perfectly exemplifies just how far south a good thing can go when you've got thousands to lose.
Bogart plays Fred C. Dobbs, a down-on-his-luck beggar living in Tampico, Mexico. When he and his friend Curtin (Holt) are cheated out of their pay by a swindler (MacLane), they overhear an old prospector named Howard (Huston) talking about gold. How he knows how to mine it, the protection and gear you'd need, everything someone can possibly know about mining gold. So, Dobbs and Curtin partner with him, travel to an unclaimed mine in bandit country, and strike it rich with a vein. But the more they find, the more Dobbs starts getting paranoid, greedy, and pretty soon murderous over the thought of losing that gold to anyone. It's an entertaining western that morphs into a psychological thriller right before your eyes. It's fascinating. The second half of this film is so unpredictable. It reminded me of the outcomes of films like The Killing, where everything that can go wrong does. Even now, over seven decades later, this film had me on the edge of my seat. Plus, it's surprisingly brutal and unforgiving for its time. This is definitely a classic for all the right reasons and remains a fantastic adventure film. |