John Huston
Westerns number but three among John Huston’s prolific body of work, yet they are cinematic achievements of substance and credit to his artistry. We recognize his contributions to the genre for the excellence he brought to the director’s chair. Huston was a visual artist, once described as the ‘Hemingway’ of film. He was known to tackle tough issues as we shall see in his 1960 film, The Unforgiven. Huston brought a perspective to the human condition some describe as the ‘Huston look’ we shall uncover in 1948’s The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.
Houston artistry starts with cinematography. Huston made films with the camera. He did not rely on the cutting room to piece together a finished work. He was known to sketch scenes on paper before framing the shots as he saw them. Some speculate Huston’s technique stems from youth spent as a street artist in Paris. Directors of his time commonly shot perspectives, angles, and effects to mix and match in editing. Huston filmed what he saw economically and efficiently.
The human condition is central to Huston films. Themes include heroic quests, often doomed to fail by circumstances, forces, or events beyond the protagonists capacity to overcome. Huston filmed the human condition facing forces of evil and character flaws forged of greed, treachery, betrayal, cowardice, and tragedy. No stranger to controversy, Huston took on issues of political and social significance regardless of their sensitivity.
The Unforgiven, starring Burt Lancaster, Audrey Hepburn, Charles Bickford, Lillian Gish, Doug McClure, and Audie Murphy, tackled racial discrimination against Native Americans and prejudice toward anyone half-bred by birth. Huston found human character on the western frontier carved out of harsh conditions and brutal life and death circumstances. The west bred tough, resilient, rugged individuals. Huston’s 1948 film
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, starred Humphrey Bogart, Tim Holt, and Huston’s father Walter as prospectors amassing a fortune in gold. Greed and distrust grind as hard as harsh, high desert mountains.
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre received four Oscar nominations with Huston taking home Best Screenplay and Best Director. Best Supporting Actor controversially went to Huston’s father, overlooking a performance many thought Bogart’s best. The film is recognized in the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress.
Next Week: Huston’s The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
Return to Facebook to comment.
Ride easy,
Paul
Houston artistry starts with cinematography. Huston made films with the camera. He did not rely on the cutting room to piece together a finished work. He was known to sketch scenes on paper before framing the shots as he saw them. Some speculate Huston’s technique stems from youth spent as a street artist in Paris. Directors of his time commonly shot perspectives, angles, and effects to mix and match in editing. Huston filmed what he saw economically and efficiently.
The human condition is central to Huston films. Themes include heroic quests, often doomed to fail by circumstances, forces, or events beyond the protagonists capacity to overcome. Huston filmed the human condition facing forces of evil and character flaws forged of greed, treachery, betrayal, cowardice, and tragedy. No stranger to controversy, Huston took on issues of political and social significance regardless of their sensitivity.
The Unforgiven, starring Burt Lancaster, Audrey Hepburn, Charles Bickford, Lillian Gish, Doug McClure, and Audie Murphy, tackled racial discrimination against Native Americans and prejudice toward anyone half-bred by birth. Huston found human character on the western frontier carved out of harsh conditions and brutal life and death circumstances. The west bred tough, resilient, rugged individuals. Huston’s 1948 film
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, starred Humphrey Bogart, Tim Holt, and Huston’s father Walter as prospectors amassing a fortune in gold. Greed and distrust grind as hard as harsh, high desert mountains.
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre received four Oscar nominations with Huston taking home Best Screenplay and Best Director. Best Supporting Actor controversially went to Huston’s father, overlooking a performance many thought Bogart’s best. The film is recognized in the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress.
Next Week: Huston’s The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
Return to Facebook to comment.
Ride easy,
Paul
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