Unforgiven
Encyclopedia
Unforgiven is a 1992 American Western
film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood
with a screenplay written by David Webb Peoples
. The film tells the story of William Munny, an aging outlaw and killer who takes on one more job years after he had hung up his guns and turned to farming. A dark Western that deals frankly with the uglier aspects of violence and the myth of the Old West, it stars Eastwood in the lead role, with Gene Hackman
, Morgan Freeman
, and Richard Harris
.
Eastwood dedicated the movie to deceased directors and mentors Don Siegel
and Sergio Leone
. The film won four Academy Awards
including Best Actor in a Supporting Role
(Hackman), Best Director
, Best Film Editing
and Best Picture
. Eastwood himself was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
for his performance, but he lost to Al Pacino
for Scent of a Woman
. In 2004, Unforgiven was added to the United States National Film Registry
as being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
The film was only the third western to win the Oscar for Best Picture following Cimarron
(1931) and Dances With Wolves
(1990).
), offers a $1,000 reward to whoever can kill Quick Mike (David Mucci) and Davey Bunting (Rob Campbell
), two cowboys who disfigured Delilah Fitzgerald (Anna Levine
), one of their own. This upsets the local sheriff, a former gunfighter known as Little Bill Daggett (Gene Hackman
); an obsessive keeper of the peace who doesn't allow guns or criminals in his town, and had given the two men leniency despite their crime.
Miles away in Kansas, the Schofield Kid (Jaimz Woolvett
), a boastful young man, visits the pig farm of William Munny (Clint Eastwood
), seeking to recruit him to kill the cowboys. In his youth, Munny was a bandit who was notorious for being a vicious, cold-blooded murderer, but is now a repentant widower raising two children. Munny initially refuses to help with the assassination, but his pigs are sick, putting his children's future in jeopardy, therefore he reconsiders a few days later and sets off to catch up with the Kid. On his way, Munny recruits Ned Logan (Morgan Freeman
), another retired gunfighter who reluctantly leaves his wife (Josie Smith) to go along.
Back in Wyoming, gunfighter English Bob (Richard Harris
) and his biographer, W. W. Beauchamp (Saul Rubinek
), arrive in Big Whiskey, also seeking the reward. Little Bill and his deputies disarm Bob, and Bill savagely beats him, hoping to set an example for other would-be assassins. The next morning Bob is ejected from town, but Beauchamp decides to stay and write about Bill, who has impressed him with his tales of old gunfights and seeming knowledge of the inner workings of a gunfighter's psyche.
Munny, Logan and the Kid arrive later amid a rain storm and go to the whorehouse to find out where the cowboys are. Munny has a bad fever after riding in the rain, and is sitting alone in the saloon when Little Bill and his deputies arrive to confront him. Little Bill has no idea who Munny is, and after finding a pistol on him he beats and kicks him out onto the street. Logan and the Kid, upstairs getting "advances" on their payment from the prostitutes, escape out a back window. The three regroup at a barn outside of town, where they nurse Munny back to health.
Three days later, they ambush a group of cowboys and kill Bunting – although it becomes apparent that Logan and Munny no longer have much stomach for murder. Logan decides to return home while Munny and the Kid head to the cowboys' ranch, where the Kid ambushes Quick Mike in an outhouse and kills him. After they escape, a very distraught Kid confesses he had never killed anyone before. When Little Sue (Tara Frederick) meets the two men to give them the reward, they learn that Logan was captured by Little Bill's men and tortured to death, but not before giving up the identities of his two accomplices. The Kid heads back to Kansas to deliver the reward money to Munny and Logan's families, while Munny heads into town to take revenge on Bill.
That night, Logan's corpse is displayed in a coffin outside the saloon. Inside, Little Bill has assembled a posse to pursue Munny and the Kid. Munny walks in and promptly kills Skinny Dubois (Anthony James), the owner and pimp of the prostitutes, then after a tense moment of dialogue with Bill, a violent gunfight ensues, leaving Bill wounded and most of his deputies dead. Munny orders everyone out – including Beauchamp, who unsuccessfully attempts an interview – and then stops Bill from reaching for his pistol. Bill curses Munny before the latter finishes him with a final gunshot. Munny threatens the townsfolk before finally leaving town, warning that he will return if Logan is not buried properly or if another prostitute is harmed.
The final scene is a bookend
shot of Munny's farm, and of Munny paying a final visit to his wife's grave. The epilogue text that follows reads that Munny and his family were rumored to have moved to San Francisco and "prospered in dry goods".
and co-wrote Blade Runner
. The concept for the film dated as far back as 1976 under the titles The Cut-Whore Killings and The William Munny Killings. Eastwood delayed the project, partly because he wanted to wait until he was old enough to play his character and to savor it as the last of his western films. Much of the cinematography for the film was shot in Alberta
in August 1991 by director of photography Jack Green
. Filming took place over 52 days between September and October 1991. Production designer Henry Bumstead, who had worked with Eastwood on High Plains Drifter
, was hired to create the "drained, wintry look" of the western.
registers a 96% approval rating among reviews. Many critics acclaimed the film for its noir-ish
moral ambiguity and atmosphere. They also acclaimed it as a fitting eulogy
to the western genre. Jack Methews of the Los Angeles Times
described it as "The finest classical western to come along since perhaps John Ford
's 1956 The Searchers
." Richard Corliss
in Time
wrote that the film was "Eastwood's meditation on age, repute, courage, heroism – on all those burdens he has been carrying with such grace for decades."
However, the film was not without its critics, including Gene Siskel
and Roger Ebert
; though the latter still gave it a positive vote, both criticized the picture for being too long and having too many superfluous characters (such as Harris's English Bob, who enters and leaves without ever meeting the protagonists). Ebert did, however, eventually include the film in his "Great Movies" list.
in the western genre (behind The Searchers
, High Noon
, and Shane) in the American Film Institute
's "AFI's 10 Top 10
" list.
The film makes an appearance in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies
. In 2005, Time.com named it one of the 100 best movies of the last 80 years. It was also admitted to the National Film Registry
in 2004.
In 1992, the film poster designer, longtime Eastwood collaborator Bill Gold
, won the prestigious Key Art award from The Hollywood Reporter
.
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
film produced and directed by Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
with a screenplay written by David Webb Peoples
David Peoples
David Webb Peoples is an American screenwriter.-Life and career:Peoples was born in Middletown, Connecticut, the son of Ruth and Joe Webb Peoples, a geologist. He studied English at the University of California, Berkeley...
. The film tells the story of William Munny, an aging outlaw and killer who takes on one more job years after he had hung up his guns and turned to farming. A dark Western that deals frankly with the uglier aspects of violence and the myth of the Old West, it stars Eastwood in the lead role, with Gene Hackman
Gene Hackman
Eugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde...
, Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won...
, and Richard Harris
Richard Harris
Richard St John Harris was an Irish actor, singer-songwriter, theatrical producer, film director and writer....
.
Eastwood dedicated the movie to deceased directors and mentors Don Siegel
Don Siegel
Donald Siegel was an influential American film director and producer. His name variously appeared in the credits of his films as both Don Siegel and Donald Siegel.-Early life:...
and Sergio Leone
Sergio Leone
Sergio Leone was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter most associated with the "Spaghetti Western" genre.Leone's film-making style includes juxtaposing extreme close-up shots with lengthy long shots...
. The film won four Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
including Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
(Hackman), Best Director
Academy Award for Directing
The Academy Award for Achievement in Directing , usually known as the Best Director Oscar, is one of the Awards of Merit presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to directors working in the motion picture industry...
, Best Film Editing
Academy Award for Film Editing
The Academy Award for Film Editing is one of the annual awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Nominations for this award are closely correlated with the Academy Award for Best Picture. Since 1981, every film selected as Best Picture has also been nominated for the Film Editing...
and Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
. Eastwood himself was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for his performance, but he lost to Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
for Scent of a Woman
Scent of a Woman
This article is about the American film. For the Korean drama, see Scent of a Woman .Scent of a Woman is a 1992 drama film directed by Martin Brest that tells the story of a preparatory school student who takes a job as an assistant to an irascible, blind, medically retired Army officer...
. In 2004, Unforgiven was added to the United States National Film Registry
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry is the United States National Film Preservation Board's selection of films for preservation in the Library of Congress. The Board, established by the National Film Preservation Act of 1988, was reauthorized by acts of Congress in 1992, 1996, 2005, and again in October 2008...
as being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
The film was only the third western to win the Oscar for Best Picture following Cimarron
Cimarron (1931 film)
Cimarron is a 1931 Pre-Code film directed by Wesley Ruggles and based on the Edna Ferber novel Cimarron. It won three Academy Awards.-Background:...
(1931) and Dances With Wolves
Dances with Wolves
Dances with Wolves is a 1990 epic western film directed by and starring Kevin Costner. It is a film adaptation of the 1988 book of the same name by Michael Blake and tells the story of a Union Army Lieutenant who travels to the American frontier to find a military post, and his dealings with a...
(1990).
Plot
A group of prostitutes in Big Whiskey, Wyoming, led by Strawberry Alice (Frances FisherFrances Fisher
Frances Fisher is a British actress. She is known for her work on television, in theater and in films, including roles as Strawberry Alice, the madame prostitute in Unforgiven , and Ruth DeWitt Bukater, the mother of Kate Winslet's character in Titanic .- Early life and education :Fisher was born...
), offers a $1,000 reward to whoever can kill Quick Mike (David Mucci) and Davey Bunting (Rob Campbell
Rob Campbell
Rob Campbell is an actor with experience in the stage, television and films.A graduate of Wesleyan University and the Yale School of Drama, Campbell performed in numerous Yale Repertory Theatre productions. On Broadway, he appeared as Lvov in Ivanov and as Manus in Translations...
), two cowboys who disfigured Delilah Fitzgerald (Anna Levine
Anna Levine
Anna Kluger Levine is an American actress. She has also been credited as Anna Levine Thompson and Anna Thomson.-Filmography:* Desperately Seeking Susan as Crystal* Murphy's Romance as Wanda...
), one of their own. This upsets the local sheriff, a former gunfighter known as Little Bill Daggett (Gene Hackman
Gene Hackman
Eugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde...
); an obsessive keeper of the peace who doesn't allow guns or criminals in his town, and had given the two men leniency despite their crime.
Miles away in Kansas, the Schofield Kid (Jaimz Woolvett
Jaimz Woolvett
Jaimz Woolvett is a Canadian actor. He was born on April 14, 1967 in Hamilton, Ontario in Canada. Woolvett's highest-profile role was The Schofield Kid, a near-sighted, aspiring gun-fighter in Clint Eastwood's Academy Award-winning Western Unforgiven . He has a younger brother, Gordon Michael...
), a boastful young man, visits the pig farm of William Munny (Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
), seeking to recruit him to kill the cowboys. In his youth, Munny was a bandit who was notorious for being a vicious, cold-blooded murderer, but is now a repentant widower raising two children. Munny initially refuses to help with the assassination, but his pigs are sick, putting his children's future in jeopardy, therefore he reconsiders a few days later and sets off to catch up with the Kid. On his way, Munny recruits Ned Logan (Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won...
), another retired gunfighter who reluctantly leaves his wife (Josie Smith) to go along.
Back in Wyoming, gunfighter English Bob (Richard Harris
Richard Harris
Richard St John Harris was an Irish actor, singer-songwriter, theatrical producer, film director and writer....
) and his biographer, W. W. Beauchamp (Saul Rubinek
Saul Rubinek
Saul Rubinek is a Canadian actor, director, producer and playwright, known for his work in TV, film and the stage.-Early life:...
), arrive in Big Whiskey, also seeking the reward. Little Bill and his deputies disarm Bob, and Bill savagely beats him, hoping to set an example for other would-be assassins. The next morning Bob is ejected from town, but Beauchamp decides to stay and write about Bill, who has impressed him with his tales of old gunfights and seeming knowledge of the inner workings of a gunfighter's psyche.
Munny, Logan and the Kid arrive later amid a rain storm and go to the whorehouse to find out where the cowboys are. Munny has a bad fever after riding in the rain, and is sitting alone in the saloon when Little Bill and his deputies arrive to confront him. Little Bill has no idea who Munny is, and after finding a pistol on him he beats and kicks him out onto the street. Logan and the Kid, upstairs getting "advances" on their payment from the prostitutes, escape out a back window. The three regroup at a barn outside of town, where they nurse Munny back to health.
Three days later, they ambush a group of cowboys and kill Bunting – although it becomes apparent that Logan and Munny no longer have much stomach for murder. Logan decides to return home while Munny and the Kid head to the cowboys' ranch, where the Kid ambushes Quick Mike in an outhouse and kills him. After they escape, a very distraught Kid confesses he had never killed anyone before. When Little Sue (Tara Frederick) meets the two men to give them the reward, they learn that Logan was captured by Little Bill's men and tortured to death, but not before giving up the identities of his two accomplices. The Kid heads back to Kansas to deliver the reward money to Munny and Logan's families, while Munny heads into town to take revenge on Bill.
That night, Logan's corpse is displayed in a coffin outside the saloon. Inside, Little Bill has assembled a posse to pursue Munny and the Kid. Munny walks in and promptly kills Skinny Dubois (Anthony James), the owner and pimp of the prostitutes, then after a tense moment of dialogue with Bill, a violent gunfight ensues, leaving Bill wounded and most of his deputies dead. Munny orders everyone out – including Beauchamp, who unsuccessfully attempts an interview – and then stops Bill from reaching for his pistol. Bill curses Munny before the latter finishes him with a final gunshot. Munny threatens the townsfolk before finally leaving town, warning that he will return if Logan is not buried properly or if another prostitute is harmed.
The final scene is a bookend
Bookend (disambiguation)
A bookend is a device used to hold a row of books upright on a shelf. It may also refer to:In arts and literature:*Bookends, an album by Simon and Garfunkel**"Bookends", the title track of the album...
shot of Munny's farm, and of Munny paying a final visit to his wife's grave. The epilogue text that follows reads that Munny and his family were rumored to have moved to San Francisco and "prospered in dry goods".
Cast
- Clint EastwoodClint EastwoodClinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
as William "Will" Munny - Gene HackmanGene HackmanEugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde...
as Little Bill Daggett - Morgan FreemanMorgan FreemanMorgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won...
as Ned Logan - Richard HarrisRichard HarrisRichard St John Harris was an Irish actor, singer-songwriter, theatrical producer, film director and writer....
as English Bob - Jaimz WoolvettJaimz WoolvettJaimz Woolvett is a Canadian actor. He was born on April 14, 1967 in Hamilton, Ontario in Canada. Woolvett's highest-profile role was The Schofield Kid, a near-sighted, aspiring gun-fighter in Clint Eastwood's Academy Award-winning Western Unforgiven . He has a younger brother, Gordon Michael...
as The Schofield Kid - Saul RubinekSaul RubinekSaul Rubinek is a Canadian actor, director, producer and playwright, known for his work in TV, film and the stage.-Early life:...
as W. W. Beauchamp - Frances FisherFrances FisherFrances Fisher is a British actress. She is known for her work on television, in theater and in films, including roles as Strawberry Alice, the madame prostitute in Unforgiven , and Ruth DeWitt Bukater, the mother of Kate Winslet's character in Titanic .- Early life and education :Fisher was born...
as Strawberry Alice - Anna LevineAnna LevineAnna Kluger Levine is an American actress. She has also been credited as Anna Levine Thompson and Anna Thomson.-Filmography:* Desperately Seeking Susan as Crystal* Murphy's Romance as Wanda...
as Delilah Fitzgerald - David Mucci as Quick Mike
- Rob CampbellRob CampbellRob Campbell is an actor with experience in the stage, television and films.A graduate of Wesleyan University and the Yale School of Drama, Campbell performed in numerous Yale Repertory Theatre productions. On Broadway, he appeared as Lvov in Ivanov and as Manus in Translations...
as Davey Bunting - Anthony James as Skinny Dubois
- Tara Frederick as Little Sue
- Beverley Elliott as Silky
- Liisa Repo-Martell as Faith
- Josie Smith as Crow Creek Kate
- Shane MeierShane MeierShane Meier is a Canadian actor who is probably most notable for playing the title role in The Matthew Shepard Story, a TV movie about the life and murder of Matthew Shepard....
as William Munny Jr.
Production
The film was written by David Webb Peoples, who had written the Oscar-nominated film The Day After TrinityThe Day After Trinity
The Day After Trinity is a 1980 documentary film directed and produced by Jon H. Else in association with KTEH public television in San Jose, California. The film tells the story of J...
and co-wrote Blade Runner
Blade Runner
Blade Runner is a 1982 American science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, and Sean Young. The screenplay, written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples, is loosely based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K...
. The concept for the film dated as far back as 1976 under the titles The Cut-Whore Killings and The William Munny Killings. Eastwood delayed the project, partly because he wanted to wait until he was old enough to play his character and to savor it as the last of his western films. Much of the cinematography for the film was shot in Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
in August 1991 by director of photography Jack Green
Jack N. Green
John Niel "Jack" Green A.S.C. , often credited as Jack N. Green, is an American cinematographer.Green was born in San Francisco, California. A frequent collaborator with Clint Eastwood, he was nominated for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award for best cinematography for the 1992 western, Unforgiven...
. Filming took place over 52 days between September and October 1991. Production designer Henry Bumstead, who had worked with Eastwood on High Plains Drifter
High Plains Drifter
High Plains Drifter is a 1973 American Western film, with a hint of the supernatural, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood and produced by Robert Daley for The Malpaso Company and Universal Pictures. Eastwood plays a mysterious gunfighter hired by the residents of a corrupt frontier mining town...
, was hired to create the "drained, wintry look" of the western.
Reception
Critical response was very positive, and review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
registers a 96% approval rating among reviews. Many critics acclaimed the film for its noir-ish
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
moral ambiguity and atmosphere. They also acclaimed it as a fitting eulogy
Eulogy
A eulogy is a speech or writing in praise of a person or thing, especially one recently deceased or retired. Eulogies may be given as part of funeral services. However, some denominations either discourage or do not permit eulogies at services to maintain respect for traditions...
to the western genre. Jack Methews of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
described it as "The finest classical western to come along since perhaps John Ford
John Ford
John Ford was an American film director. He was famous for both his westerns such as Stagecoach, The Searchers, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and adaptations of such classic 20th-century American novels as The Grapes of Wrath...
's 1956 The Searchers
The Searchers (film)
The Searchers is a 1956 American Western film directed by John Ford, based on the 1954 novel by Alan Le May, and set during the Texas–Indian Wars...
." Richard Corliss
Richard Corliss
Richard Nelson Corliss is a writer for Time magazine who focuses on movies, with the occasional article on music or sports. Corliss is the former editor-in-chief of Film Comment...
in Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
wrote that the film was "Eastwood's meditation on age, repute, courage, heroism – on all those burdens he has been carrying with such grace for decades."
However, the film was not without its critics, including Gene Siskel
Gene Siskel
Eugene Kal "Gene" Siskel was an American film critic and journalist for the Chicago Tribune. Along with colleague Roger Ebert, he hosted the popular review show Siskel & Ebert At the Movies from 1975 until his death....
and Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
; though the latter still gave it a positive vote, both criticized the picture for being too long and having too many superfluous characters (such as Harris's English Bob, who enters and leaves without ever meeting the protagonists). Ebert did, however, eventually include the film in his "Great Movies" list.
Box office
The film debuted at the top position in its opening weekend. Its earnings of over $13 million on its opening weekend was the best ever opening for an Eastwood film. Unforgiven eventually earned $160 million worldwide in ticket sales and $101 million in the United States alone.Academy Awards
| Award | Person | |
| Best Picture Academy Award for Best Picture The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only... |
Clint Eastwood Clint Eastwood Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide... |
|
| Best Director Academy Award for Directing The Academy Award for Achievement in Directing , usually known as the Best Director Oscar, is one of the Awards of Merit presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to directors working in the motion picture industry... |
Clint Eastwood Clint Eastwood Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide... |
|
| Best Editing Academy Award for Film Editing The Academy Award for Film Editing is one of the annual awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Nominations for this award are closely correlated with the Academy Award for Best Picture. Since 1981, every film selected as Best Picture has also been nominated for the Film Editing... |
Joel Cox Joel Cox Joel Cox is an American film editor. He is best known for collaborating with Clint Eastwood in over 30 films.-Life and career:Cox has been working in film since appearing as a baby in Random Harvest . He started in the mailroom at Warner Bros. in 1961.His first film as an assistant editor was The... |
|
| Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the... |
Gene Hackman Gene Hackman Eugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde... |
|
| Nominated: | ||
| Best Art Direction-Set Decoration Academy Award for Best Art Direction The Academy Awards are the oldest awards ceremony for achievements in motion pictures. The Academy Award for Best Art Direction recognizes achievement in art direction on a film. The films below are listed with their production year, so the Oscar 2000 for best art direction went to a film from 1999... |
Henry Bumstead Janice Blackie-Goodine Janice Blackie-Goodine Janice Blackie-Goodine is set decorator. She was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film Unforgiven.-External links:... |
|
| Best Actor Academy Award for Best Actor Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... |
Clint Eastwood Clint Eastwood Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide... |
|
| Best Cinematography Academy Award for Best Cinematography The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work in one particular motion picture.-History:... |
Jack N. Green Jack N. Green John Niel "Jack" Green A.S.C. , often credited as Jack N. Green, is an American cinematographer.Green was born in San Francisco, California. A frequent collaborator with Clint Eastwood, he was nominated for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award for best cinematography for the 1992 western, Unforgiven... |
|
| Best Sound | Les Fresholtz Les Fresholtz Les Fresholtz was an American sound engineer. He won two Academy Awards for Best Sound and was nominated for ten more in the same category. He worked on over 110 films between 1968 and 1996.-Selected filmography:... Vern Poore Vern Poore Vern Poore is an American sound engineer. He won an Academy Award for Best Sound and has been nominated for four more in the same category. He worked on over 60 films between 1975 and 1996.-Selected filmography:... Rick Alexander Dick Alexander Dick Alexander is an American sound engineer. He won two Academy Awards for Best Sound and was nominated for six more in the same category. He has worked on over 170 films and television shows since 1975.-Selected filmography:... (as Dick Alexander) Rob Young Rob Young (sound engineer) Rob Young is a Canadian sound engineer. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Sound for the film Unforgiven. He has worked on over 100 films since 1975.-External links:... |
|
| Best Original Screenplay | David Webb Peoples | |
Others
In June 2008, Unforgiven was listed as the fourth best American filmCinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
in the western genre (behind The Searchers
The Searchers (film)
The Searchers is a 1956 American Western film directed by John Ford, based on the 1954 novel by Alan Le May, and set during the Texas–Indian Wars...
, High Noon
High Noon
High Noon is a 1952 American Western film directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly. The film tells in real time the story of a town marshal forced to face a gang of killers by himself...
, and Shane) in the American Film Institute
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
's "AFI's 10 Top 10
AFI's 10 Top 10
AFI's 10 Top 10 honors the ten greatest American films in ten classic film genres. Presented by the American Film Institute , the lists were unveiled on a television special broadcast by CBS on June 17, 2008....
" list.
The film makes an appearance in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies
AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies
The first of the AFI 100 Years… series of cinematic milestones, AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies is a list of the 100 best American movies, as determined by the American Film Institute from a poll of more than 1,500 artists and leaders in the film industry who chose from a list of 400 nominated movies...
. In 2005, Time.com named it one of the 100 best movies of the last 80 years. It was also admitted to the National Film Registry
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry is the United States National Film Preservation Board's selection of films for preservation in the Library of Congress. The Board, established by the National Film Preservation Act of 1988, was reauthorized by acts of Congress in 1992, 1996, 2005, and again in October 2008...
in 2004.
The music for the Unforgiven film trailer that appeared in theatres and on some of the DVD's was composed by Randy J. Shams and Tim Stithem in 1992.
American Film InstituteAmerican Film InstituteThe American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
recognition
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies - #98
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Thrills - Nominated
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains:
- Sheriff “Little Bill” Daggett - Nominated Villain
- William Munny - Nominated Hero
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes:
- "It's a hell of a thing killin' a man. You take away all he's got and all he's ever gonna have." - Nominated
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) - #68
- AFI's 10 Top 10AFI's 10 Top 10AFI's 10 Top 10 honors the ten greatest American films in ten classic film genres. Presented by the American Film Institute , the lists were unveiled on a television special broadcast by CBS on June 17, 2008....
- #4 Western Film
In 1992, the film poster designer, longtime Eastwood collaborator Bill Gold
Bill Gold
Bill Gold is an American graphic designer best known for thousands of movie poster designs.His first film poster was for Yankee Doodle Dandy , and his most recent work was for J...
, won the prestigious Key Art award from The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
.
External links
- Unforgiven at Filmsite.orgFilmsite.orgFilmSite.org is a website operated by Tim Dirks since 1996, and owned by AMC since 2008. It contains over 300 reviews of what Dirks judges to be the "greatest films" of all time. In some cases, the review is scene-by-scene. It also contains many other pages offering an introduction to cinema...
- Unforgiven at the Arts & Faith Top100 Spiritually Significant Films list
- Psychoanalytic review of Unforgiven