The Petrified Forest

United States

1936

82 Min

Black and White

1.37:1

English

Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
1
2
3
4
5

SCR Robert E. Sherwood, Delmer Daves, Charles Kenyon

CAST Leslie Howard, Bette Davis, Genevieve Tobin, Dick Foran, Humphrey Bogart, Joe Sawyer, Porter Hall, Charley Grapewin, Paul Harvey, Eddie Acuff, Adrian Morris, Nina Campana, Slim Thompson, John Alexander, Arthur Aylesworth

One of my favorites, Bogart and Davis. This is the role made for Bogart the relationship between Bogart and Howard is pure joy. this is the role that made Bogart a star or got him noticed. The killer and the dreamer both in love and on a one way ticket to death.

Dr. Strangelove

29Jan11

One of the greatest scripts ever put to cinema.

Anastasia and Graeme Higginson like this

Graeme Higginson

28Dec11

I was very surprised. The last half is gold.

rynmcgnns

10Jun10

I know this movie saved Bogart's career, and so everybody watches it for his performance (eh), but why doesn't anybody talk about the script? It's so stage-bound that there's little else to even consider. To my mind, it's a poor gangster film (i.e. a poor action film); the stakeout is just a pretext to keep all the personalities concentrated in one place; meanwhile, Howard can ruminate endlessly on his artistic impotence and the bleak prospects for civilization. The stakes never feel especially high, and Howard is awkward even when he's delivering his choicest lines, like the bit about "The Hollow Men." Bogart sure looks good, and Bette Davis never gets too precious with her idealism, but the minor characters are forgettable, including the infantilized, blood-thirsty grandfather. What I responded to most was the deathly tone, which for all the missteps is sustained via tastefully inserted pauses, muted lighting, and the general absence of a score.