Episode 162: Unforgiven

What’s good, homies? Welcome to another pod! This week, we’re kicking off a two-part series to honour the late Gene Hackman with a revisionist Western masterpiece and an honest-to-goodness ripper of a film, Clint Eastwood’s 1992 Best Picture winner “Unforgiven”! “Unforgiven” is a critically beloved and perfectly executed movie that delivers genuine characters, beautiful cinematography and iconic settings, nuanced performances, and a story that keeps you on the edge of your seat. It is simultaneously a thematically layered, complex, and subversive film that has a lot to say about the genre, masculinity, violence, and the American West while being a damn good watch.“Unforgiven” was directed and produced by Clint Eastwood (earning him a Best Director win) and stars Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris, Jaimz Woolvett, and Saul Rubinek. Written by David Webb Peoples, who also co-wrote films like “Blade Runner”, it is a look into the morally ambiguous and dangerous world of the West filled with flawed and complex characters, sudden violence, and no real winners. It’s an investigative allegory for the genre itself, a look at the truth about masculinity and violence in the West, and a meta-textual exploration of Eastwood as a star. It’s a gut punch of a film that features incredible performances across the board, especially from Eastwood and Hackman (who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Little Bill).In this episode, we break down the plot, explore the aforementioned theme and subversions, and share what makes this film so impactful and important to the genre. We explore some of our favourite moments from the jailhouse scene to the final shootout, discuss how the characters act as contrasting thematic duos, and break down what a revisionist Western film is. Ultimately, we marvel at how genuinely great this movie is and, conversely, discuss how easily it is for subversive films to fall short in delivering something both intellectual and enjoyable. Thankfully, “Unforgiven” goes hard in all aspects. Although we try not to get too academic, it’s hard not to when talking about such a beloved, complex, and important film. Now, you might say we don’t deserve to pod like this. To that, I say, “Deserve’s got nothing to do with it.”Listen to “When This Is Over, Let’s Go Dancing” by Anxiety Weekend on…Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/060CSCe5yQiIv3a1SpQzHY?si=B87eI8WURqqoWpNd6hL9swApple Music: https://music.apple.com/ca/album/when-this-is-over-lets-go-dancing/1796328195Bandcamp: https://anxietyweekend.bandcamp.com/album/when-this-is-over-lets-go-dancingGet tickets to see Otis Morris open for Tim Butterly here: https://simpli.events/e/670df2INITIATE BIRD PROTOCOL!Follow us on Instagram!Instagram: @palmreadr @otismorrisdude