The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (film)

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (original title: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre) is a film 1948 American film written and directed by John Huston based on the 1927 novel Der Schatz der Sierra Madre written by B. Traven. It stars Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Robert Blake, Tim Holt, Bruce Bennett and Barton MacLane.

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre was one of the first Hollywood movies to be filmed on location outside of the United States specifically Mexico (in the landscapes of the state of Durango, streets of Tampico, rural areas of Coatepec de Morelos and San Miguel Chichimequillas in the municipality of Zitácuaro, (Michoacán, Mexico), although many scenes were filmed in the studio and elsewhere in the United States.

Winner of 3 Oscars and 3 Golden Globes, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre was deemed “culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant” by the United States Library of Congress and selected for its preservation in the National Film Registry in 1990. It is the top 05 of the 100 Greatest Action Movies of All Time by GQ.

Plot

In 1925, in the Mexican city of Tampico, Fred C. Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart) and Bob Curtin (Tim Holt), two penniless American drifters, are recruited by contractor Pat McCormick (Barton MacLane) as laborers to help to build oil rigs for $8 a day. When the project is complete and they return to Tampico, McCormick escapes without paying the men.

The two drifters meet an old man named Howard (Walter Houston) in a flophouse. The ex-miner, talkative and penniless, tells them about the search for gold and the dangers of getting rich. Dobbs and Curtin meet McCormick in a saloon, and after a bar fight, they collect their back wages. When Dobbs wins a small lottery prize, he, Curtin and Howard have enough money to buy the supplies they need to go panning for gold in the interior.

Leaving Tampico by train, the three help repel a bandit attack led by "Gold Hat". North of Durango, the trio heads into the remote mountains of the Sierra Madre. Howard proves to be the toughest and most knowledgeable of the three. After several days of arduous travel, Howard discovers the gold that the others had passed by.

The men work under harsh conditions and accumulate a fortune in alluvial gold. But as the gold accumulates, Dobbs becomes increasingly wary of the other two. The men agree to divide the gold dust immediately and hide their parts.

Curtin, while on a resupply trip to Durango, is discovered shopping by a Texan named James Cody (BruceBennett). Cody secretly follows Curtin to the camp. When he confronts the three men, they lie about what they are doing there, but he is not fooled. He dares to propose that they join his team and share the future profits. Howard, Curtin, and Dobbs discuss it and vote to kill him. As they announce their verdict, gun in hand, Gold Hat and his bandits arrive. They claim to be federal. After a tense debate, a shootout ensues and Cody is killed. A real troop of Federales suddenly appears and chases Gold Hat and his gang. The three searchers examine Cody's personal effects. A letter from a loving wife reveals that she was trying to support her family.

Howard is called upon to assist local villagers with a seriously ill young child. When the boy recovers the next day, the villagers insist that Howard return to them to be honored. Howard leaves his property with Dobbs and Curtin and says that he will meet them later. Dobbs and Curtin argue constantly, until one night Dobbs shoots Curtin and takes all the gold. However, Curtin is not dead; he manages to crawl and hide during the night.

Seeing that Curtin is missing, Dobbs flees, but is ambushed at a pond by Gold Hat and his men. First they play with him and then they kill him. The bandits mistake the bags of gold dust for sand and dispose of the treasure, taking only the donkeys and provisions. The gold is scattered by the strong wind. Meanwhile, Curtin is discovered by the Indians and taken to Howard's town, where he recovers.

The Golden Hat gang tries to sell the stolen donkeys in town, but a boy recognizes the brands they bear (and Dobbs' clothes, which the bandits wear) and reports them to the authorities. The bandits are captured and summarily executed by the feds.

Howard and Curtin return to Durango in a dust storm hoping to claim their gold, but find the bags empty. Initially moved by the loss, first Howard and then Curtin understand the immense irony of their circumstances, and they burst out laughing. Howard decides to return to town to accept the offer of a permanent home and a position of honor, while Curtin sells his repossessed property to return to the United States, where he will search for Cody's widow. As Curtin drives away, the camera pans to a cactus riding past. Next to him is another empty bag.

In short, the film masterfully captures the degradation of values, such as friendship or camaraderie, that occurred at the time of the "gold rush", and also shows that even the most honest person she could be driven to commit the most horrendous crimes as she found herself overcome by her greed.

Cast

Presentation of Humphrey Bogart in the trailer of the film.

• Humphrey Bogart - Fred C. Dobbs
• Tim Holt - Bob Curtin
• Walter Huston - Howard
• Alfonso Bedoya - Gold Hat, the head of the bandits
• Bruce Bennett - James Cody
• Barton MacLane - Pat McCormick

Awards and nominations

Oscars

Golden Globes