Review of Unforgiven (1992) by Barry N — 27 Jul 2011

Unforgiven is just a straight up western, but there is just something that makes it stand out from most westerns. I could go on and on about how good the acting is in this movie, or I could talk about how complex the characters are, like Gene Hackman, as he keeps us guessing what he's going to do or how he's going to do it. I could talk about the dark tone this movie had, that really shocked me. It's probably one of the darkest westerns I've ever seen. The final scene of Clint Eastwood in the bar absolutely terrified me. This film is mostly a revenge story, but it's also more than that. It takes us into a darker and more cynical western we don't see very often. We see a crooked Sheriff who thinks he's above the law, we get a look at two former robbers who just want to collect one last bounty, and we see harsh prejudice that existed in the Old West. It also talks about the issue of taking a life. One of my favorite scenes is when a kid, after killing someone, looks at his hands and ponders the wonder that his hands ended the life of a man. Dark, edgy and also ponderous, this film sets a staple for westerns intellectually, conceptually and entertainingly.

9.8/10.