Unforgiven is a prefect example of how a movie can be technically and thematically flawless, but still not be enjoyable. Clint Eastwood?s story of hookers and hitmen in the lawless west is a great movie in many respects, but I ultimately don?t enjoy...
- 09.October.2009
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- by: Ethan Clapham
- Ethan Clapham rated this movie
 0/10
Unforgiven is a prefect example of how a movie can be technically and thematically flawless, but still not be enjoyable. Clint Eastwood?s story of hookers and hitmen in the lawless west is a great movie in many respects, but I ultimately don?t enjoy watching it. Sure, it has wonderfully complex characters played by a few of the best actors in the business, Morgan Freeman, Gene Hackman, and Eastman himself. Unforgiven?s story has many layers and is open to interpretation, qualities of good writing and building blocks of excellent screenplays. But in the end, who cares?
The story and characters are so depressing that Unforgiven is hard to watch. The pace is slow and the climax is really the only exciting part of the film. Granted, the final showdown is a great example of Eastwood?s talent, but the rest of the movie is a good example of how even talented filmmakers can fail occasionally. If you can make it through the slow, depressing middle, the ending at least makes an effort to redeem the film.
I can see why Unforgiven one the awards and critical acclaim it did. First off, the entire Academy is full of Eastwood fans; that much is obvious. Second, the skill here is obvious. The direction is almost great, the story is wonderful, and the acting is great. But somehow, the sum of the parts is much less than it should be. So, the awards I can understand, but how Unforgiven makes it on so many ?Top 100″ or ?Top 250? lists is beyond me. There are many, many better westerns. So unless you?re a huge Eastwood fan, if you want to see a great western, grab something else.
- 09.October.2009
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- by: Ethan Clapham
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I'm not sure why, but I'm not a big fan of Clint Eastwood's directorial efforts. Not even the acclaimed Million Dollar Baby or Mystic River. Perhaps his stories are all just a tad too grim for my taste. Ironically, Unforgiven is arguably the...
- 22.March.2009
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- by: coolerking
- coolerking rated this movie
 8/10Great
I'm not sure why, but I'm not a big fan of Clint Eastwood's directorial efforts. Not even the acclaimed Million Dollar Baby or Mystic River. Perhaps his stories are all just a tad too grim for my taste. Ironically, Unforgiven is arguably the grimmest of the bunch, and yet it's the one I really like. Go figure. I guess I'm just a sucker for a good western, seeing as how they are so rare these days. What I admired most about this film were its many well-developed characters. Eastwood, Freeman, and Hackman all give terrific, nuanced performances as bad men doing bad things for what they believe to be good reasons, but I think it was Richard Harris' brief but memorable appearance as pompous gunfighter, English Bob, that really sold this one for me.
- 22.March.2009
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- by: coolerking
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Not only the greatest Western ever made, I am not the first to make that statement here, but maybe one of the best movies ever. The human relationships explored, in this great looking film, will cause much conversation among viewers.
- 16.March.2009
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- by: Norm Gregory
- Norm Gregory rated this movie10/10Must See
Not only the greatest Western ever made, I am not the first to make that statement here, but maybe one of the best movies ever. The human relationships explored, in this great looking film, will cause much conversation among viewers.
- 16.March.2009
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- by: Norm Gregory
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Unforgiven
I'm not a fan of westerns. I was told that Unforgiven is a film that transcends its genre, and would make me appreciate the western. Unfortunately, 'Unforgiven' didn't make me fall in love westerns, but I was able to appreciate the strong characters...
- 24.January.2009
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- by: Alex Stajos
- Alex Stajos rated this movie7/10Good
Unforgiven
I'm not a fan of westerns. I was told that Unforgiven is a film that transcends its genre, and would make me appreciate the western. Unfortunately, 'Unforgiven' didn't make me fall in love westerns, but I was able to appreciate the strong characters that this film produces. The setting, acting and other western cliches got under my skin at times, and I did have issues with much of the plot. I have a hard time connecting with a movie where I'm supposed to sympathize with an evil man doing evil things, now matter how it is presented to me. Regardless, this film is all about the characters, and Eastwood gives a phenomenal performance as an old, tormented cowboy who wishes he could escape his demons of his past. He and Gene Hackman, as Bill Daggett, create a sense of cowboy awe, where you feel as though they are superhuman. They supersede normal men and are capable of doing things that no human should be able to do. All the while they show a certain amount of vulnerability which shows that they are human, if only a few moments of weakness. Watching these men you can't help but feel as the biographer feels; wanting know their past and gawking at their feats. I can't say that this film made love westerns, but it certainly made me appreciate the impact of a few really great performances can make on an otherwise mediocre film.
- 24.January.2009
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- by: Alex Stajos
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eastwood's eulogy for the western
Clint Eastwood did this movie three years after the death of Sergio Leone - the legendary director whose movies made Clint a household name (a fist full of dollars, the good the bad and the ugly) and one year after the death of Don Siegel - another...
- 02.August.2008
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- by: barak gilon
- barak gilon rated this movie9/10Amazing
eastwood's eulogy for the western
Clint Eastwood did this movie three years after the death of Sergio Leone - the legendary director whose movies made Clint a household name (a fist full of dollars, the good the bad and the ugly) and one year after the death of Don Siegel - another great director who starred Clint in his westerns. this is not a coincidence, the movie is dedicated to them and its main theme is the disappearence of the old west. the hero (or antihero) can hardly get on his horse at the begining of the film. it is a pretty depressing movie and eastwood heavily criticizes the way american society treats the weak who live among them.
- 02.August.2008
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- by: barak gilon
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