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This superb adaptation of B. Traven's novel about gold and greed reunited Humphrey Bogart with writer-director John Huston, whose 1941 version of The Maltese Falcon put both of them on Hollywood's A-list. In an unusually daring bit of casting, Bogart played an unsympathetic protagonist: down-at-heel Fred C. Dobbs, a man of weak character whose larcenous impulses get the better of him while on an ill-fated expedition in the Sierra Madre mountains. Accompanied by newfound friend Curtin (erstwhile cowboy star Tim Holt), Dobbs trails along with Howard (Walter Huston, the director's father), a crusty, eccentric old prospector who needs the younger men to help him mine the gold he has found in the desolate hill country. Huston's screenplay initially focuses on the camaraderie of these unlikely partners, then on their euphoria at striking pay dirt, and later on the greed and paranoia that grips them. Bogart's characterization of Dobbs, who believes his partners are scheming to steal his share of the gold, is a tour de force unequalled in this legendary actor's distinguished career. But Walter Huston, who won a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his bravura turn as the wizened desert rat, upstages even the remarkable Bogie. In fact, that year's Oscar ceremony was a bonanza for the whole family: John won two awards of his own for the film's script and direction. More than a half century later, Treasure still impresses as a powerful commentary on the dark side of human nature. Gritty and uncompromising, it tells a basically unpleasant story but does so quite entertainingly -- which is why it remains a favorite of movie buffs and filmmakers alike. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

John Huston's 1948 treasure-hunt classic begins as drifter Fred C. Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart), down and out in Tampico, Mexico, impulsively spends his last bit of dough on a lottery ticket. Later on, Dobbs and fellow indigent Curtin (Tim Holt) seek shelter in a cheap flophouse and meet Howard (Walter Huston), a toothless, garrulous old coot who regales them with stories about prospecting for gold. Forcibly collecting their pay from their shifty boss, Dobbs and Curtin combine this money with Dobbs's unexpected windfall from a lottery ticket and, together with Howard, buy the tools for a prospecting expedition. Dobbs has pledged that anything they dig up will be split three ways, but Howard, who's heard that song before, doesn't quite swallow this. As the gold is mined and measured, Dobbs grows increasingly paranoid and distrustful, and the men gradually turn against each other on the way toward a bitterly ironic conclusion. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is a superior morality play and one of the best movie treatments of the corrosiveness of greed. Huston keeps a typically light and entertaining touch despite the strong theme, for which he won Oscars for both Director and Screenplay, as well as a supporting award for his father Walter, making Walter, John, and Anjelica Huston the only three generations of one family all to win Oscars. Hal Erickson

Product Details

• UPC: 012569581623
• Source: WARNER HOME VIDEO
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: B&W
• Sound: Dolby Digital Mono
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English, Français, Español
• Time: 2:06:00
• Sales Rank: 8,886

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• The Humphrey Bogart Collection
• Humphrey Bogart - The Signature Collection, Vol. 1

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