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Summary: This is a cool movie to kick back and relax to
Review: I watched this with my son the other night.
It teaches the value of not being too greedy.
It's fun.
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Summary: Spellbinding study of human nature in its raw form
Review: "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre", is now always placed in that sacred pantheon of Bogie classics along with "Casablanca", "The Maltese Falcon, and "The African Queen", when his work is discussed, however that was not the case upon the film's release in 1948 when it was a commercial failure and was not well liked at all by Humphrey Bogart's legion of fans. Rejected because of the largely unsympathetic character he portrays, happily with time that situation has been rectified and it is now considered one of his greatest performances worthy of classic status."The Treasure of the Sierra Madre", tells the uncompromising, warts and all story of three men thrown into a situation where their basic characters and instincts are put to the supreme test. The story in actual fact is a seering study of greed and opportunity and what it does, or can do to essentially ordinary decent individuals. The film has aged very well because its commentary could be very easily transferred to any setting in todays world where temptation and greed can distort lives. Based on a novel by B. Traven and adapted for the screen by multi talented John Huston who also directed, "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre", gave both Humphrey Bogart and Walter Huston (John's father) some of the best roles they ever had. Bogart plays Fred Dobbs who we first see in Mexico living from hand to mouth and literally down to his last dollar when fate intervens and he finds himself teaming up with fellow bad lucker Bob Curtin (Tim Holt in another powerful performance) and old timer Gold Prospector Howard (Walter Huston in his Oscar winning role). The reason for the collaboration is the lure of Gold desposits in the Sierra Mountains which seem to be ripe for the pickings if only one can get to them. While Dobbs and Curtin can provide the muscle needed to extract and carry the gold, Howard provides the know-how and the experience to avoid the other pratfalls that they may encounter along the road to making their fortune. What develops is a gritty, rugged three character study of the lengths that individuals will go in the pursuit of wealth. In their case it leads from basic greed, through mistrust of each other, to violence and even murder. Certainly the story is not a pretty one but it is riverting in its startling depiction of the morale decline so easily possible in even the most decent of men. Humphrey Bogart is the very soul of this story and his is a stunning performance in a complex and unappealing role which alot of actors would not have succeeded in making multi dimensional as Bogart does here. We witness the moral decline of his character into paranoia, and wretched desperation and eventually to attempted murder. The irony here is that eventually he is the victim of the piece when he finds himself the statistic of maurading Mexican banditos who murder him literally for the shoes on his feet. Walter Huston totally deserved his Oscar for playing the old timer who has seen it all and often finds himself acting as referee between the two younger men who through lack of experience and impatience often find themselves in hot water. All is not totally dark along the way however as we are shown an exciting story of the men being duped out of salary by a corrupt town boss (Barton MacLane in at terrific performance), the group's trek to the Sierras fighting off bands of Mexican Banditos, greedy fellow gold seekers, and encountering the natives who "ask" for Howard's help and literally kidnapp him back to their settlement to assist in saving the life of a young boy. A winner of three Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor, Best Screenplay and Best Director and nominated for Best Picture, "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre", is a stunning showcase in acting performances, writing and in settings. Indeed the beautiful on location photography both in the Mexican towns and especially in the Sierra Mountains where the film was almost entirely shot really makes the film, displaying in vivid pictures the hardship and isolation that the men encounter in their pursuit of wealth. The blood thirsty banditos, the rugged mountainous terrain, the heat, and the back breaking labour of extracting the gold are all depicted here in a harsh light that gets across the non glamour feel of the piece. The final stunning scene in the film which I wont reveal here for those that haven't seem this classic yet, but which is an unexpected resolution to the story, succeeds in playing up the uncertain life that belongs to people such as the three men here who are gamblers in a world where life can deal out fortune and good luck and then take it away just as quickly. Stunning is the only word to describe "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre". It is now respected as one of the great American classics and deserves to be revived more than it is. Rarely does a film combine action and excitement with well written character studies but this film succeeds superbly. Despite it's long running time you will find yourself riverted to the screen for its entire running time. I find it always gets me thinking about how quickly human nature can change and be distorted by outside influences that are normally foreign to our way of being. Enjoy dramatics at their very best in John Huston's "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre".
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Summary: Does my soul good...
Review: to watch this film every year. Sometimes more than once if it's movie night and someone indicates they like Bogart but have never seen Treasure of the Sierra Madre. This is a true classic film by definition. Masterful direction, interesting photography, unselfish character portrayals and a wonderful story of friendship and greed. There are a handful of smiles in this film and it's as suspensful as any thing produced today. As a few others have mentioned, it is sad that this title isn't available on DVD. But it WILL be and I look forward to adding it to my collection someday.
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Summary: They never make movies like this
Review: Real enough that you can believe it all. Nobody is larger than life in this story, none of the events are fantastic in anyway, but taken all together this film is epic. John Huston's best. Not having this film available on DVD is tragically sad.
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Summary: Greatest American movie of the 20th century
Review: This was Bogart's greatest dramatic role, in a movie based on the novel by the "mysterious" B. Traven. The entire cast, but especially Bogart and Walter Huston, turned in the best performances of their careers.Why this isn't on DVD yet is totally beyond me...
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Summary: A spellbinding film of unique power
Review: Directed by John Huston (son of Walter Huston) this film depicts two American hard-luck drifters (Humphrey Bogart and Tim Holt) that feel trapped in Tampico, Mexico. Sometimes working odd jobs and fighting for their salaries, and sometimes begging for money to buy food and an occasional beer, they come upon an older tough-minded, worldly drifter (Walter Huston) in a disreputable hotel. Having heard stories from the old man regarding the lust for gold dust, the two decide to take up prospecting, asking the seasoned prospector to form a partnership with them. After acquiring supplies and burros, they trek into the Sierra Madre mountains to set up their claims. Personalities begin to falter as luck begins to shine on the threesome but the greatest defect belongs to Bogart in the form of greed and paranoia and violent reactions toward his companions. Once they decide they have enough riches and heal their mountain's wounds, they move back down to cash in their goods. Along the way they become separated when a group of Mexican Indians asks for help from Huston to heal an injured child. With his healing success, Huston is asked to spend time with the tribe as a medicine man and politcal leader. Bogart and Holt continue on, promising to cash in Huston's goods and saving the money for him in Durango. Along the trail Bogart's paranoia becomes extreme and unrelenting. Defect in character precedes a murder, or so it would seem, until the killer is ambushed himself by banditos on thier own hard-luck road of crime. In the end... peace and happiness for the survivors, without the need for gold and its paralyzing curse, come to form for those with faith in the truly important things in life. Fantastic!
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Summary: Spectacular - American filmmaking at its best...
Review: It's tough to decide what Humphrey Bogart's best film is, but this one is definitely in the top three, along with The Maltese Falcon and Casablanca. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, ranked by the American Film Institute as #30 on their all-time greatest films list, is a truly wonderful film that offers, in addition to two hours of great entertainment, some real insights on greed an how gold can turn a relatively innocent bum into a manatically suspicious and dangerous man. Basically, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is about Fred C. Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart), who is stuck in a small town in Mexico, broke. That changes when he wins a substantial prize in the lottery. Sick of his poverty-stricken life, Bogart decides to go searching for gold in the mountains. He teams up with a friend and an older and more experienced man, and the three pool their savings, buy equipment, and set off to hunt for the treasure of the Sierra Madre. Anyhow, as surprising as it is given his image and his appeal as a box-office star, Bogart intentionally made his character become increasingly diagreeable as the film progressed, proving that the old man, who had spoken about the effect of gold on mens' souls before they set out, was right in his prediction. Bogart's performance is truly brilliant, regardless of the fact that it may have bothered audiences when the film was first released, leading to its failure at the box-office. Additionally, the film benefits from an insightful script, a great director, and wonderful shots of the actual Sierra Madre mountains (it was filmed on location). So, from the very beginning to the masterful, ironic final shots, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is a true classic in every sense of the word! See it and enjoy!
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Summary: One of the Great Adventure Epics
Review: I remember doing a unit on Bogart back in Grade 9. He was certainly one of the great movie stars. While this may be one his least scrupulous roles, it is nevertheless one of his best films. John Huston directs this story from B. Traven's novel about three out-of-work Americans living in Mexico who decide to take up prospecting for gold. Heading off to the mountains, the threesome must contend with harsh weather, interfering visitors, banditos, and ultimately each other. Huston films mostly on location getting excellent local detail. It takes a moment to get used to the fact that the film is in black and white. It probably would have been better in colour as the black and white makes the film look a bit dusty. However, it's unlikely that Huston could have afforded to both shoot on location AND in colour (colour was a lot more expensive in the forties). The one scene that stood in my mind was the scene where Dobbs begins to lose it. With Howard vacationing with the natives in their village, Curtin must contend with an increasingly paranoid Dobbs. Dobbs is convinced that Curtin is planning to kill him and take his and Howard's gold. Thus Dobbs believes he must kill Curtin first. The scene where Curtin must try to stay awake while Dobbs is looking on is truly one of the most frightening moments in the film. Gold certainly has a way of corrupting people's minds as Howard had warned Dobbs and Curtin. Dobbs will ultimately meet his demise in a manner that was foreshadowed earlier. I thought the ending was very good. Not a happy ending in the way that we were expecting, but a happy ending just the same.
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Summary: Great!
Review: Wonderful classic that starts off a little slow but than really picks up speed with some of the best dialogue you will ever hear in a movie. It is a classic story of how greed can warp a man's soul and turn him into a monster. It was weird too see Humphrey Bogart playing a villain especially as I had previously seen him playing good guys but all in all probably one of his best performances. I had originally seen this on TV in the horrible colorised version and I absolutely hated it but I recently saw the black and white version and I loved it and recommend that unstead of the stupid colorised version! Besides the excellent performance from Bogart you will also see excellent perormances from Tim Holt and Walter Huston.
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Summary: Bogart at his best
Review: Humphrey Bogart is at his best in this movie playing a poor man trying to get some easy going money. He meets Tim Holt, another one like him and they become friends. Soon they hear an old man (Walter Huston) talking about gold in the hills. Holt and Bogart decide to go with the man and all three begin looking for gold. When the gold starts changing their minds they become suspicious and don't trust one another. The movie has great acting from Huston, Holt, and Bogart! The directing is also superb. John Huston, the director, son of Walter Huston, makes a cameo appearance as a guy giving Humphrey Bogart a coin in the beginning when Bogart asks him for money. Enjoy this movie because it's a treasure.
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