The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is a fascinating film directed by John Huston and stars individuals such as Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, and Tim Holt. The movie centers its attention on two Americans, Dobbs, and Curtin searching for work in Mexico. The two characters convince an old prospector named Howard to help them mine gold in the Sierra Madre Mountains. The three individuals are lucky to find gold and start mining. Nonetheless, bandits and greed threaten to turn their success into disaster. The movie is educative since it involves various issues experienced by people in the community. For instance, self-indulgence is portrayed as one of the themes since disagreements are encountered after discovering gold. Howard finds that he can kill either Dobbs or Curtin to get a more significant gold share. Thus, various aspects such as themes, characters, plot, and background story can be considered by an individual when analyzing the film.
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is an adaption of Traven’s novel of the same name published in 1920. Traven’s tale was used by Huston, where the movie’s set up is in Durango, Mexico. The film portrays how challenges forced characters such as Dobbs and Curtin to travel to Mexico and try their lack. Additionally, the two are fraud victims, which involve workers not being not paid by corrupt employers. The characters have been used to depict how people in society face different problems, leading them to seek better livelihoods in other regions. The story develops when the two characters learn about the old gold burn-out prospector in the local pub. Unfortunately, a lack of adequate funds limits their chances of partnering with Howard. Luckily, Dobbs wins some money in a local lottery, helping them hook up with Howard and set off to the hills searching for gold. Therefore, the background story helps the audience learn how the storyline develops in the film. The audience can also understand how character development is practiced in the movie by focusing on Dobbs, Curtin, and Howard’s transformation.
The theme of greed is the central subject in the movie and can be analyzed to determine how Huston exercises it. The concept has been presented in the first turning point, which involves discovering a land with plenty of gold. The three agree that they would be splitting the gold equally. Moreover, each individual would hide and tend to his individual’s share. Although they are successfully mining gold and disguising them as planned, changes are experienced after Curtin sees a venomous lizard. Curtin decides to kill the lizard, but it hides under a rock. Unexpectedly, Curtin finds out that Dobbs hides his gold under the same stone. Moreover, Dobbs sees Curtin lifting the rock and feels that his gold will be stolen, despite seeing the venomous lizard.
Another character named Cody is also introduced in this scene, where he requests to join them. However, they decide to shoot him due to their greed for the gold, but bandits find them before killing Cody. The group bargained for some of their weapons, but these armaments are vital to the men, and they refuse to do business, resulting in an exchange of gunfire. Cody, who helps to defend the three characters, is killed. Nonetheless, the bandits are forced to flee, and the characters continue mining the gold to guarantee that it is sufficient for them.
The second segment of the story starts when the characters have acquired adequate gold and have to find a market to trade the goods. The trip to the city will also involve going through the desert, which is onerous. They begin their journey to the town, and on the first stages of the trip, Howard, who has health care skills, is forced by some primitive local people to return with them to treat an ailing kid (Cassidy 5). Therefore, he ensures that his gold shares are left with Dobbs and Curtin when going to attend to the child. This moment leads to another issue of greed since Dobbs is suspicious that Curtin might kill him and abscond with the gold. Nonetheless, Dobbs and Curtin proceed with the journey despite Dobbs being afraid that Curtin might murder him. Unfortunately, Gold Hat, the bandits’ leader who had attacked them, identifies Dobbs and steals his goods after executing him.
The climax of the story reaches the point where Gold Hat decides to return to the city and sell his stolen goods. People execute him after learning that he had stolen the goods. The theme of greed is also depicted in this plot since self-indulgence influenced Gold Hat to kill Dobbs to acquire the goods (Cassidy 6). Curtin has survived despite facing challenges in the trip, and when Howard returns, they realize that their fortune is missing. The two share an unexpected laugh claiming that although they had bad luck, they are successful than Dobbs and Gold Hat, who have already lost their lives.
The various scenes that Huston has used reveal how greed has impacted the lives of the characters, whereby death has also been encountered. The theme has been developed gradually in the film, with its introduction being where the three characters find gold. The concept has been used to educate the audience about the need to avoid selfishness and be reliable. Using themes is a literary technique that authors implement to guarantee that people can enjoy a particular piece and understand the moral lessons. The audience can also learn that the film’s protagonists are Howard, Dobbs, and Curtin, while the antagonist is the Gold Hat.
To conclude, Huston uses the movie to show that people’s actions can impact their lives. For instance, Gold Hat murders Dobbs and steals the goods. However, his immoral actions cause him to face death in the city. Although the film’s setting is in Mexico, people from different regions can learn that the message being conveyed addresses multiple communities’ issues. Character development has also been used to show how people change in society due to various aspects. For instance, Dobbs and Curtin traveled to Mexico to try their luck as partners. Nonetheless, they find the find gold, and Dobbs suspects that Curtain might steal his hidden goods. Moreover, he becomes suspicious that Curtin might kill him on their way back to the city.
The movie’s moral lesson is that self-desires lead to different problems, and people should ensure that they are authentic. Curtain and Howard also learn that life would go on after the loss of their goods and friend. Consequently, their unbroken spirit made them symbols of resolve in adversity. In this case, one can argue that the two characters represent tenacity in misfortune because they have undergone various challenges searching for wealth. Still, in the end, they realize that life is more precious than all material things.
Work cited
Cassidy, Casey. “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.” An American Grail.” (2019). Web.