The Greatest Western Directed by Clint Eastwood is Streaming on Max in November

Clint Eastwood’s Western masterpiece Unforgiven is streaming on Max from November 1. One of the greatest movies of Eastwood’s career, and the entire Western genre, the 1992 epic helped to revive stories of the Old West many years after the genre appeared to die out. Scoring a huge win at the box office, with critics, and at dozens of awards events, Eastwood’s legacy as a director was set in stone with Unforgiven.

Unforgiven tells the story of William Munny (Eastwood), a once notorious gunslinger whose peaceful life his changed when he is offered a bounty to kill two cowboys guilty of assaulting a woman. However, as Munny takes on the task, he comes up against sheriff Little Bill Dagget – played by Gene Hackman – and his morals and grit are tested as he continues his mission. Like many Westerns, the themes of the consequences of violence, vigilante justice, and revenge are all present in a movie that put Eastwood front and center as an actor and director at the top of his game.

Unforgiven does not comply with all the usual Western tropes though. There is a deep study of human nature, and the conflict shown within Munny’s character makes him the antithesis of the rugged and celebrated outlaw brandishing his pistols in a blaze of glory. Instead, Eastwood brings a realism and gravitas to the story, ably supported by Hackman, Morgan Freeman, and Richard Harris, and the groundbreaking result rightfully became one of the greatest movies of all time.

Unforgiven Became One of Clint Eastwood’s Greatest Movies

Having previously dominated the Western genre in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Eastwood never really left it behind. However, Unforgiven managed to defy the passage of time and the supposed death of the genre to become an incredibly successful box office release, backed up with a host of acclaim and awards.

With a budget of $14.4 million, Unforgiven grossed over $159 million at the box office, landing a place as the 12th highest grossing movie of 1992 in terms of worldwide takings. The film’s success was spurred on by strong reviews that gave Eastwood his highest Rotten Tomatoes score as a director – which still stands at 96% positive reviews. The Washington Post hailed Unforgiven as one of the “most intense and involving Westerns since Sergio Leone,” which was probably not surprising considering Eastwood’s body of work under the legendary director.

When it came to awards, Eastwood gained the largest haul of his entire career, personally picking up multiple Best Director and Best Film wins, including at the Academy Awards, and being nominated for Best Actor. As well as emphasizing Eastwood’s impact on a genre he spent so much time putting on the map, Unforgiven also became an inspiration for many future Westerns that were no longer all about glorifying the horse-riding, gun-totting heroes of the Wild West, but aimed to tell stories of how that world was full on danger, disillusion, and damaged people. Now a whole new audience – particularly those who have been disappointed by Kevin Costner’s recent release of Horizon – can discover a true giant of the Western genre in one of the greatest movies of all time on Max.

Unforgiven, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood, is a Western that delves into the myths of the American West. The film follows William Munny, a retired and widowed outlaw, who takes on one last job with his old partner and a young gunslinger. They aim to avenge a disfigured prostitute in a corrupt town controlled by a brutal sheriff. The film explores themes of redemption, the brutal realities of frontier justice, and the consequences of violence.

Release Date

August 7, 1992

Runtime

2hr 10min

Studio

Warner Bros., Malpaso Productions

Tagline

It’s a hell of a thing, killing a man

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