Unforgiven (1992)

Director: Clint Eastwood
Story: David Webb Peoples
Cast: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman
Music: Lennie Niehaus
Time: 136 minutes
Bottom-line: Superb work by Eastwood – in acting and direction

Clint Eastwood is arguably one of the most influential people in Hollywood history – in both acting and direction. This 1992 Western directed by him won him the Academy Award for Best Director and also Best Picture. Starring Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman and Morgan Freeman in the lead roles, the film was an attempt by Eastwood to revive the Western genre. He dedicated the film to directors Sergio Leone and Don Seigel. Unforgiven could well be Eastwood’s best directorial work so far.

Big Whiskey, Wyoming – two cowboys cut up and disfigure a girl, and a reward of $1000 is offered to whoever can kill them. The sheriff, Little Bill Daggett (Hackman) lets go of the two cowboys without any punishment. Meanwhile, a young man, the Schofield Kid (Jaimz Woolvett) goes to the pig farm of William Munny (Eastwood), a repentant old man with two children, who used to be a notorious bandit and murderer years ago. The Kid asks Munny to help him in the mission of killing the two cowboys, telling him that the $500 reward can help him give a better life for his children. Munny reluctantly agrees, and also recruits his old friend, Ned Logan (Freeman) to assist him. Once they enter Big Whiskey, the trio get split up, and soon, each member undergoes life-changing experiences...

Eastwood as William Munny

The main reason Unforgiven succeeds as a Western is simply because, it is made like how a Western should be. Eastwood stuck to the traditional ideas of a Western, instead of modernising the genre. And though I generally like films which try to completely re-innovate a particular genre (which is what made me a fan of Christopher Nolan), I think that Unforgiven is most effective when filmed in this form. There is the wicked, cold-blooded villain, an old hero who used to be a skilled killer, and his friend, also extremely skilled when it comes to shooting. Of course, there is no surprise with the ending (like I said – no twists and turns, but a straightforward story...), but there are few scenes that caught my eye.

Hackman as Little Bill

The scene where Munny tries to revive his shooting skills by shooting a barrel, the scene where Daggett talks with his biographer, and the final clash between Munny and Daggett are few of the best scenes. Unlike what Tarantino did in Django Unchained (where the gunfight erupts from nowhere), Eastwood first builds the suspense, before the big gunfight. The fault with the storyline, I felt, was that there were unnecessary characters – the one of English Bob was useless (except for that one scene where Bill Daggett challenges him) and that of the biographer as well.

Freeman as Ned Logan

Clint Eastwood’s acting is excellent – I like the way he displays the transition of character: from an old man wanting to repent for his sins, to a man trying to regain his skills, and then back to the cold-blooded murderer he was. Just like how in almost every film, Rajinikanth tells some ‘punch dialogue’, here too, Eastwood has some catchy lines: when he faces Bill in the saloon, Munny says, “I've killed women and children. I've killed everything that walks or crawls at one time or another. And I'm here to kill you, Little Bill” (which pretty much summarises his character). And of course, Gene Hackman is outstanding as the villain, Little Bill Daggett. He portrays Daggett in the same way I imagined any classy villain in the Western genre. Morgan Freeman has only a small role, but he too delivers. The strong performances by the trio enhance the film to a great extent.

If you haven’t seen any film of this genre, Unforgiven is one of the best films to start with. Splendid acting, a good storyline (albeit it contained many extra characters), and importantly, sticking to the ‘traditional’ method of filming westerns rather than trying to modernise it are what make the film a success. The film could have been improved, by making it shorter and perhaps crisper, but the outcome is still stylish. Eastwood fan or not, watch the film if you are in the mood to try a different film, or rather, any good film for a change!

My Rating: 4/5
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 96%