Le Vent de la plaine

This film, The Unforgiven, as opposed to Clint Eastwood's classic is taken from a novel by Alan LeMay who also wrote The Searchers. Both stories are about the post Civil War Texas frontier. But in this one we have the Indians seeking out one of there's who's been taken by whites and raised as one of their own. The person in question is Audrey Hepburn who's been raised by Lillian Gish as her own daughter and sister to her three sons, Burt Lancaster, Audie Murphy, and Doug McClure.

It was an unwritten law of Hollywood that no one shoots a film in Monument Valley except John Ford. So John Huston made due with Durango in Mexico which had become a favorite western location site also. Huston got some good performances out of his cast although he had many problems.

Audrey Hepburn fell off a horse and was injured for a few weeks. Audie Murphy nearly drowned in a river. Topping it all off, according to a recent biography of Burt Lancaster was the fact that Lillian Gish served as a kind of back seat driver to John Huston. She was forever telling him that D.W. Griffith did this or that a different way. But apparently Ms. Gish was satisfied with the finished product because she acclaimed Huston as another Griffith when it was over.

The story really gets going when some Kiowas come knocking on Lillian Gish's door demanding Audrey Hepburn's return. When it's discovered that Hepburn in fact is an Indian, the reaction of the neighbors and some of the family is to send her back. Lancaster, Gish, and McClure aren't having it though.

The Unforgiven was butchered in the editing department. One role that was mostly left on the cutting room floor apparently was John Saxon as a halfbreed named Johnny Portugal. Standing out though is Joseph Wiseman as the crazy ex-cavalryman now turned preacher who has a hate for Audrey Hepburn. Why he does you'll have to see the film, but it's an interesting problem.

Its parts, its individual performances make The Unforgiven an uneven film where the whole is not greater than the sum of those parts.

When I first became aware of the cast list (Lancaster, Gish, Hepburn, Murphy, Bickman, Wiseman) & the director (the great John Huston) for this movie, I just knew it was going to be a great Western, but I was sadly disappointed. The acting is good, no doubt about it, & the direction is fair, but there are a few things that go too far astray here. I mean, really, could you fall in love with & want to marry a person who you thought was your sibling for the past 20+ years?! Another problem here is that Lancaster's character seems to be portrayed as the noble defender of his family & as such, the Indians are made out to be his enemy, so they would seem to be the "bad guys," when all they're trying to do is repatriate one of their own (initially in a very peaceful manner). If the white settlers were to do the same thing, they would be considered heroes for doing so, & they'd make a movie about it with John Wayne as the hero & call it "The Searchers!" Kidding aside, there is too much injustice here that is left unconsequated (such as the killing of dozens of Indians & the killing of an innocent man who was only attempting to speak the truth) for this to be a satisfactory film for me. Audrey Hepburn is miscast here. Also, the score by Tiomkin is OK, but did the music have to dominate in such a loud manner as to drown out all other aspects of the film, including some dialog? I rate this only a 5/10.

I wasn't expecting to like The Unforgiven. Don't get me wrong I don't mind westerns and I am a fan of both Audrey Hepburn and John Huston. However, prior to seeing this film I heard a lot of negativity on it. After seeing it for myself, I think it is very underrated. It is flawed, but I do admire this film.

It does begin in a lethargic manner and I personally thought the final scene could have been better thought out. Also, despite my love for her, I was not entirely convinced by Audrey Hepburn. She is graceful, charming and elegant and I applaud her for taking on a completely different role to any other she's played, but she was never quite believable in her role, to me her accent sometimes came and went and she felt somewhat out of place.

However, it looks gorgeous with the cinematography beautiful and the scenery magnificent. The music is very rich and wonderful, the dialogue is thought-provoking and the pace in the middle I had no problem with. I was pleasantly surprised at how ambitious the story was, the subject of racism could have easily been dealt with in a heavy-handed way like in Crash, but it doesn't thanks to the construction of the story which is quite impressive and it also helps that the characters are surprisingly credible. John Huston's direction is also terrific, and the acting ensemble is very good generally. Burt Lancaster is a charismatic presence, while Audie Murphy is a sheer delight in this movie.

In conclusion, it is a good movie despite the miscast(I do say this with a heavy heart) and one or two scenes that could have been better judged. 7/10 Bethany Cox

When the weird Abe Kelsey (Joseph Wiseman) with his saber appears in the Zachary's ranch threatening the matriarch Mattilda Zachary (Lillian Gish) and her stepdaughter Rachel (Audrey Hepburn), she does not tell to her sons Ben (Burt Lancaster), Cash (Audie Murphy) and Andy (Doug McClure). Later, when Rachel comments about him, Ben and Cash unsuccessfully chase him in a sand storm. Meanwhile, Kelsey poisons the relationship of the Zachary's family with their neighbors and the Indians Kiowa disclosing that Rachel would be a Kiowa baby stolen years ago in a raid by Kelsey himself and Mattilda's husband, when her parents were killed. Later, he wanted to trade Rachel per his son, captured by the Kiowa, but the old Zachary did not accept his proposal. The racists' neighbors turn their backs to the Zachary's family, while the Kiowa siege them in their house while trying to bring Rachel back to their tribe.

"The Unforgiven" is a western about the impressive intolerance between Caucasians and Indians in the beginning of the colonization of North America by the whites. The story is very well developed, with the usual outstanding direction of John Huston. Joseph Wiseman has a magnificent performance in the role of a despicable villain, a revengeful man capable of destroying many lives. Burt Lancaster is also great in his leadership, while Lillian Gish is amazing in the role of a protective mother. Audrey Hepburn and John Saxon are convincing as Indians. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "O Passado Não Perdoa" ("The Past Does Not Forgive")

The unforgiven is a nice movie, western. That is a good story which find in this movie a good adaptation for the cinema. This story is about a Indian woman who live since she was baby with a white farmer and cattle and horse breeder family. and naturally with the impulse and the coming of an old man who know the true, the Indian Kiowa want to rehabilitate the girl.

The story is the opposite (inverse), contrary of the searchers (1956) with John Wayne and Nathalie Wood.

In the unforgiven the girl make a different choice for the issue of the story. The story is good because the mystery and a little suspense appear, and it is on the top with the Indians.

One of assets in the unforgiven is the photography. We have beautiful pictures in this film.

And we find a great Audrey Hepburn, who give something magic and mysterious anytime she is on the screen.

A nice western to see.

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