The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

Fred Dobbs and Bob Curtin, two Americans searching for work in Mexico, convince an old prospector to help them mine for gold in the Sierra Madre Mountains.

Director:

John Huston

Writers:

John Huston (screenplay), B. Traven (based on the novel by)

Stars:

Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Tim Holt

Top Rated Movies #123 | Won 3 Oscars. Another 12 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Humphrey Bogart	...	Fred C. Dobbs
Walter Huston	...	Howard
Tim Holt	...	Curtin
Bruce Bennett	...	Cody
Barton MacLane	...	Pat McCormick (as Barton Mac Lane)
Alfonso Bedoya	...	Gold Hat
Arturo Soto Rangel	...	Presidente (as A. Soto Rangel)
Manuel Dondé	...	El Jefe (as Manuel Donde)
José Torvay	...	Pablo (as Jose Torvay)
Margarito Luna	...	Pancho

Storyline

Fred C. Dobbs and Bob Curtin, both down on their luck in Tampico, Mexico in 1925, meet up with a grizzled prospector named Howard and decide to join with him in search of gold in the wilds of central Mexico. Through enormous difficulties, they eventually succeed in finding gold, but bandits, the elements, and most especially greed threaten to turn their success into disaster.

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Plot Keywords:

mexico | sierra madre mountains | national film registry | afi | 1920s | 

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Taglines:

The nearer they get to their treasure, the farther they get from the law.

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Western

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

24 January 1948 (USA)

Also Known As:

Treasure of Sierra Madre

Filming Locations:

Tucson, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$5,014,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

126 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

As production dragged on, Humphrey Bogart, who was an avid yachtsman, was starting to get increasingly anxious about missing the Honolulu Classic, the Catalina-to-Hawaii race in which he usually took part. Despite assurances from the studio that he would be wrapped on the picture by then, he started to constantly dog John Huston about whether he would be done in time. Eventually Huston had enough and grabbed Bogart by the nose and twisted hard. Bogart never asked him how long before the shooting was over again.

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Goofs

Glaringly obvious use of doubles in the barfight scene to replace Humphrey Bogart, Tim Holt and Barton MacLane.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Dobbs: Say buddy, will you stake a fellow Am...

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Connections

Referenced in Fred C. Dobbs Goes to Hollywood (1983)

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Soundtracks

Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms
(1808) (uncredited)
Music traditional
Played on harmonica by Walter Huston

User Reviews

"I know what gold does to men's souls."

The Treasure of Sierra Madre, is not only a stunningly visual treat, but also a story and script of depth and magnitude, set in old time Mexico.

As a Bogart fan, I found it at first, difficult to get past Bogart playing such a ragged and gritty character, once I did I realised him and his co stars - Walter Huston & Tim Holt were such a tenacious force in this 2.5 hour epic.

Sierra Madre feels fresh and could stand up well against anything put out today. I have not seen a film in recent years, with outstanding lines, powerfully delivered by Huston or with the conviction and honesty Holt does..with Bogart, all three characters are very different yet essential.

Do yourself a favor and go buy or rent this. It carries great moral and truth, in a story of rags to almost riches.

~Paul Browne.