Review of Unforgiven (1992) by Pedro G — 23 May 2012

Being a protege of the one and only Sergio Leone, Clint Eastwood is obviously no stranger when it comes to Westerns. Even as a director, he helmed The Outlaw Josey Wales and Pale Rider, and he certainly wanted to honor his work in the genre, by making one final Western film.

The result was the 1992 Best Picture winner Unforgiven, and it's easily one of the strongest of its genre ever put out. Unforgiven works as well as it does primarily because of the way it tosses aside genre conventions, switching up the roles of the hero and villain by making the normally honorable sheriff "protagonist" into a sinister and sadistic town tyrant, and the grungy murderous villain character is transformed into a world-weary and sympathetic old man, who managed to escape his days of wrongdoing through the love of his wife, only to be pulled back in once again by unplanned circumstances.

It also completely removes the romanticism of the genre; make no mistake, Unforgiven is an extremely dark Western. Though strands of Leone's DNA run throughout, there are some key differences in tone.

Ever notice how the Man with No Name, despite being a morally ambiguous killer himself, was always usually seen as the righteous hero? Not so with Will Munny, whose pain, anger, and anguish over his actions clearly haunts him with every step.

Will and his former partner, Ned Logan, clearly don't have much heart for murder anymore; that is, until provoked. Eastwood has always been a solid director, and his touch is present throughout, helping make the film the wonderful genre tribute that it is.

David Peoples, the co-writer of Blade Runner, delivers a script that is also unique among its genre brethren, adding not often seen dimensionality to all of its characters. However, what really makes Unforgiven is its strong and well-cast ensemble.

Eastwood himself delivers a surprisingly subtle performance as Munny, and when the beast comes out, becomes a truly terrifying force. When he threatens to kill an entire town, you have no doubt in your mind that he absolutely means it.

Veterans Morgan Freeman and Richard Harris deliver always-solid supporting turns, and Jaimz Woolvett, Saul Rubinek, Frances Fisher, and Anna Levine also leave strong impressions. Gene Hackman, however, completely steals the show as the tyrannical sheriff "Little Bill", earning his Oscar for his quietly menacing performance.

Lennie Niehaus delivers a very Eastwood score, Jack N. Green paints some beautiful Western landscapes, and Joel Cox's editing is sharp. Unforgiven definitely deserves the accolades it's received, and is both a loving tribute and harsh examination of the Western genre.