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Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart) and Curtin (Tim Holt), cheated out of promised wages and down on their luck, meet old prospector Howard (Walter Huston) in the Mexican oil-town of Tampico. They set out to strike it rich in the remote Sierra Madre mountains, searching for gold. They ride a train into the hinterlands, surviving a bandit attack en route. In the desert, Howard proves to be the toughest and most knowledgeable; he is the one to discover the gold they seek. A mine is dug, and much gold is extracted. Greed soon sets in, and Dobbs begins to lose both his trust and his sanity, lusting to possess the entire treasure. Dobbs is also unreasonably afraid that he will be killed by his partners. A fourth American named James Cody (Bruce Bennett) appears, which sets up a moral debate about what to do with the new stranger. The men decide to kill Cody, but just as the three confront him with pistols and prepare to kill him, the bandits reappear, crudely pretending to be Federales. (This leads to a now-iconic line about not needing to show any "stinking badges.") After a gunfight with the bandits, in which Cody is killed, a real troop of Federales appears and chases away the bandits. Howard is called away to assist some local villagers in saving a little boy. The next day he is asked, without the option of declining, to go back to the village to be honored. However, he leaves his goods with Dobbs and Curtin. Dobbs, whose paranoia continues, and Curtin constantly argue, until one night when Curtin falls asleep, Dobbs holds him at gunpoint, takes him behind the camp, shoots him, grabs all three shares of the gold, and leaves him for dead. However, the wounded Curtin survives and manages to crawl away during the night. Dobbs is later ambushed and killed by some of the bandits. In their ignorance, the bandits believe Dobbs' bags of unrefined gold are merely filled with sand, and they scatter the gold to the winds. Curtin is discovered by indios and taken to Howard's village, where he recovers. He and Howard miss witnessing the bandits' execution by Federales by only a few minutes as they arrive back in town, and learn that the gold is gone. While checking the area where the bandits dropped the gold, Howard realizes that the winds must have carried the gold away. They accept the loss with equanimity, and then part ways, Howard returning to his village, and Curtin returning home to the United States.Read full review
One of my favorite movies of all time. Tremendous story with even better acting and directing. This movie is one of John Huston's true gems, and is arguably Bogart's best performance. Walter Huston's "Howard", the wise old prospector, is a one-of-a-kind character that could not have been played better by anyone in Hollywood. He clearly deserved the Oscar for his brilliant supporting role. The greed of Bogart's Fred C. Dobbs and his lust for riches turns quickly to paranoia. It eventually becomes bad karma for Fred C.! Tim Holt also turns in a strong performance as the good guy Curtin who tolerates Dobbs' type "A" personality on steroids with tolerance and patience. The acting overall is top-notch thoughout the film. Even the bit players turn in masterful and convincing roles, such as Robert "Baretta" Blake as the young lottery ticket peddler and Alphonoso Bedoya as "Gold Hat" the bandit. Character actors Barton McLane and Bruce Bennett portray key figures in excellent fashion. Time has treated this motion picture very well. It seems to gain popularity as the years go by, and for good reason. It is a family-friendly movie with a moral anyone can learn from.Read full review
Wrapped in a classic tale of adventure, this Acadamy Award winner follows a trio of gold prospectors played by Humphrey Bogart ( The Maltese Falcon, Key Largo, Casablanca, Sahara, etc), Walter Huston ( Duel in the Sun, The Furies, Yankee Doodle Dandy, The Devil and Daniel Webster, etc), and Tim Holt (best known for role in many 1930 westerns). They set out to strike it rich in the Sierra Madre mountains of Mexico and do find the gold they are looking for, however, then one of them (Bogart) gets paranoid about the gold (losing it or having it stolen). Then they decide to return to civilization with their loot-and encounter all types of problems-desert, bandits and the ever present paranoia and greed. This movie is directed by John Huston (who father played one of the miners and won an Acadamy Award for Best Supporting Actor) and he has had many great hits to his directing career-and this one may be one of the very best (Casablanca, Sahara, Key Largo, The Maltese Falcon, etc). If you like classics of the 1940s or a fan of Humphrey Bogart-then this movie is for you. This movie is a true classic and will entertain most people whether you have saw it before or not. Great Movie with great actors and acting.Read full review
I have never been much of an old movie buff,nor particulary a big Bogart fan, either Pro or Con, but this flick captured my attention immediately. The story line in this film though is superb. Action and drama continue comsistantly while showing just how men get caught up in the lust of the excess and greed. Transforming men into undisciplined , selfish, self centered lunatics.I also see a theme lesson in the story, whether this was intended or not. That any man can lose his self control and lose who he is, if he allows greed and the lure of quick riches to over take him. Leading down a path, where he never intended to go. We should relate, living in this dog eat dog world we live in. Most men do not even realize they have traveled down this dead end street, until it is way far too late. If you enjoy a great plot, memorable sound bites, and a clasic flick that will keep you attention glued to the screen awaiting , what's gonna happen next. You will not be disappointed with this one. Not to mention, they put this whole DVD together in a first class package with a collectors style case,and a bonus DVD with bonus material. GREAT value form the dollar!! Try it, you'll ,like it!! God Bless!!Read full review
10 April 2010: Sat. Hello Chas. here: The director John Houston is one of my favorites. I have most of his movies & they are all great classics. Unforgiven, & For Whom the Bell tolls, it tolls for thee!!!!! Director Houston saw the real side of human nature. Dobbs (greed) wanted all the gold @ any cost!!!!! So much for friendship & trust when a big pot of gold is on the table. Hope you all are having a nice day. Chas...
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