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The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (Two-Disc Special Edition)

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (Two-Disc Special Edition)

List Price: $26.99
Your Price: $21.59
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: This really is a Treasure !
Review: This is a first rate classic movie, still extremely enjoyable today. Bogart at his best along with a strong cast and the almost perfect direction of movie icon John Huston. It is one of those films you need for your collection and you will watch it many times.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Bogart's greatest performance
Review: Treasure of Sierra Madre features Humphrey Bogart at his very best. As down and out Fred Dobbs, he spends his days hitting up others for money, (Hey mister, can you stake a fellow American to a meal?) He is so fixated on the money in the people's hands, that he doesn't even see their faces. He hits up the same man in the same suit three different times for meal money.

Eventually, he hears an old grizzled prospector (Walter Huston)talk about the riches available to them in the mountains in the form of gold. The old man had a desire to go back if he could find a couple of younger men who would like to go. Along with Tim Holt, Bogart and the older man head for the hills in search of wealth.

Even before they get there, the old man has warned the younger men about the dangers of finding a lot of gold. Their hearts will turn greedy and wicked, he said. Bogart says that once he got a few thousand dollars worth, that would be enough for him. The beauty of the film is the simple irony of that statement. Bogart's transformation into the obsessive, gold loving man he becomes is amazing. He can trust no one, even the two men he is partnered with.

During their time in the hills, they encounter several memorable characters who are all trying to either kill them, steal their gold, or both. At least that's the way Dobbs looks at them. Most notable is the bandito Alfonso Bedoya who does not say "We don't need no stinkin badges", rather "I don't have to show you any stinkin badges". This, like Casablanca's "Play it again, Sam" is one of the most missed quotes in movie history.

The ending of the film is both logical and tragic. In the end, all we can say is that Bogart's character is one of the most interesting character studies we have witnessed on film. We are left to ask if something like that could really happen to us. Could we become this focused on something and forsake all that is so important to us? According to this film, it's very possible.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Must-Have DVD
Review: Since I have already reviewed this, one of America's greatest cinematic masterpieces, I will urge any and all to purchase this excellent packaging and presentation of John Huston's finest fictional hour (his war-time documentaries are his truest masterpieces).

Besides containing a pristine and vibrant transfer which makes the gorgeous silver, rainy-grey, cloud-white and jet black cinematography vibrate with rich detail, Warner Brothers has outdone themselves and bookended this classic film with a treasure trove of fantastic extras.

While the commentary by author Eric Lax is only so-so, the documentaries are brilliant and illumanitive- especially the biographical feature which alone makes this package a must have. Featuring interviews with the avuncular Huston himself as well has film clips and wonderful insights from his family and co-workers, this superb documentary celebrates one of Hollywood's true characters. Huston was a type of figure never to be seen again.

The behind the scenes documentary about the dramatic story behind the making of the film, narrated by John Milius (I would have appreciated his commentary more!)proves almost as entertaining as the feature itself. Short Subjects, Cartoons and trailers as well as a fascinating radio broadcast from 1949 featuring Bogie and Walter Huston rounds out the extras which make this a most certain must have DVD for all film fans.

Money well spent!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: WAY WAY overrated - Bogart is TERRIBLE
Review: John Huston was a very smug, pompous man, and his films reflect a lot of his attitude. Treasure of the Sierra Madre is missing the emotional scope that many many imbue it with -- in its place is a totally hammy performance by Bogart, a terrible Max Steiner score, and a lame take on greed. I find it an oddly disturbing film to watch because it portends to be so much, yet always keeps a macho distance from its characters. Bogart's portrayal of Dobbs has the ring of untruth to it, and when this overweening character finally gets his own -- it doesn't feel like a great cinematic moment. This is a film I have tried to like for years and years. Also, the cinematography is wholly lacking -- everything is staged like a 50s TV show. Oh the more I write about it the more I realize how much it stinks.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Grab this one while you can
Review: Movie lovers have waited many years for the kind of presentation offered in this outstanding reissue. Some may consider the feature story a cynical depiction of warped Western values. However, it does give a very sympathetic portrait of the Mexican people whereas they have often been depicted in cinema as uncivilized beasts. As depicted by B. Traven we learn of the honesty of the young mexican lottery ticket seller even after he had been verbally and physically humiliated by Fred C. Dobbs, we learn of their satisfactory dispensation of justice to three Mexican thieves and murderers, and we learn of their reverence for knowledge. Secondly, the film shows an early example of environmental responsibility when the old man insists on "repairing" the mountain after the trio have mined it. Thirdly, Mr Bogart gives one of his most devastating over the top performances as a truly nasty character who gets a thoroughly deserved come-uppance when clubbed to death. The film could be viewed as the allegory of the three archetypal characters - the good, the bad, and the innocent, or the three sides to every man. And there is an undoubtedly great cinematic moment at the conclusion when the old man(the good) and the young man(the innocent) laugh almost to the point of pain at the fact the gold dust has been swept up by the wind and "returned to the mountain" where it belongs. Humanity, love, and civilisation prevail in the end. The print quality is excellent. But in addition to this the program may be viewed as one would see it when released - a contemporary newsreel, trailer for another film, a cartoon precede the "main feature". The real "gold" in the extras though, is a feature length documentary on the director John Huston, narrated by Robert Mitchum and featuring Lauren Bacall, Paul Newman and others. The clips from some of Mr Huston's war documentaries, especially those associated with the US army landing in Italy must be some of the best war footage ever captured on film but remained classified by the US Army until 1980.
The discussion on courage, as understood by Mr Huston, is astonishing and memorable. A remarkable documentary filled with many film clips including Mr Huston's private collection. To me, this edition represents astonishing value for any film lover.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Like Taking a Bus Trip with Someone who Smells
Review: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is like taking a bus trip with someone who has needed a bath for a long time. It's not merely bad; it's unpleasant in a hostile way. The dialogue is inane, the acting wooden. This is just a lumbering, poorly photographed piece of derivative drivel, full of grunting extras scampering around in animal pelts and more dank, trash-strewn sets than I ever care to see again. Humphrey Bogart overacts, and this is an understatement. He chews up so much scenery he probally got indigestion when filming was done. Anyone who questions this movie's distinction as being one of the worst of the 20th century, has a few screws loose. A crime against celluloid.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: great movie, shame about the previous review
Review: mr . Cerasini, if you don't like this movie, why even bother to show up on this review site....your assesment of this classic movie is so full of spite and totally ludicrous on ALL accounts, it's laughable.....I guess you feel a little better and smarter by having given a contradictory opinion to almost all of the cinema going public and critcs, have you ? See, now I've done the same as you, a vile little piece of critical pap...what a waste of my time....

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: WHAT'S SO GREAT ABOUT THIS FILM?
Review: Overrated, overproduced, overacted, stagy, cynical and snide. Why does this film have such a great reputation? It's a depression-era bath in manure, with a feel-bad ending of the kind that the liberal elite love (because they are rich and comfortable and need that touch of misery to feel like "the little guy"). It doesn't surprise me that this film was rejected by the paying audiences of the time--those folks had enough real misery and didn't need the cinematic kind.

Indeed, now that we're on the subject, what is the basis for Humphrey Bogart's reputation? Hell, Lon Chaney, Jr. was a better actor and had more range (remember Lenny?). Bogart was nothing more than a big, dumb no talent lummox and he played the worst Philip Marlowe next to Elliot Gould's (who, along with Robert Altman, should have been shot by a firing squad for making THE LONG GOODBYE in the 1970s). "The Treasure of Sierra Madre" is no treasure, it's Warner Brothers studio pap.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Brilliant on all levels...
Review: John Huston's The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is my second favorite film of all-time. The first being Tod Browning's Freaks from 1932. This is Humphrey Bogart at his best. It is fascinating to see Bogart as Fred C. Dobbs break down. This film showcases greed and paranoia like none other. Walter Huston is also very good as Howard, an old prospector that knows what gold can do to a mans heart. Many films have been influenced by Treasure of the Sierra Madre. Among them - Henri-Georges Clouzot's Wages of Fear, Sam Peckinpah's Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia, and Brian DePalma's Scarface. Look out from cameos from Robert Blake, Ann Sheridan, and Jack Holt. The DVD has some terrific extra features as well. There is a 2-hour documentary on director John Huston, a 1-hour documentary on the film, a Bogart trailer gallery, Lux Radio Theatre Broadcast of Treasure of the Sierra Madre, 8-Ball Bunny - a Looney Toons cartoon, and lots more. Just watch it, folks.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Treasure hunt in mexican desert
Review: Timeless tale of greed and desire, as three down-and- out men track down elusive golden wealth.

The movie is set up extremely well, as we learn about the men and their lot in life, well before they set out on their dangerous quest.

The parallels of greed resound today, with the corporate scandals and such. The riches that tempt men's souls can destroy the weak. Management techniques of the trio are on display as well, as they face challenges in the bleak wilderness.

The movie really holds up well under 21st century scrutiny. Every scene has meaning and their are many, running sub-plots and themes that remain true to themselves as they interweave,leave and then return throughout the movie. Keep your eye on the young Robert Blake, he had a small but amusing role in the beginning.

There are not many movies that have as much to offer, scene after scene, as this one does. Those who speak spanish will enjoy some of the un-translated dialogue between various locals, it is not spoon fed with accented english as so many movies do today. Great stuff!!


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