LOVE the movie,... can't stand the ending.
For those who have never seen it I will avoid spoiling it. But I just can't take that ending. I don't own the DVD just because of that. I wish there was an alternate ending DVD.
shareSPOILERS:
It is a bitter, painful, ironic, didn't-have-to-happen-that-way, tragic-in-all ways ending, to be sure.
As I recall, despite the all-star cast and great lines and action, "Hombre" wasn't a huge hit. That ending may well be why. Bad word of mouth.
But some stories have to tell the story they have to tell. You might say that "Hombre" is one of the first "downbeat seventies movies"(like Chinatown and The Parallax View), three years early.
Its also a bit like the ending of "Se7en." Or "Vertigo." The seventies didn't have a copyright on painful tragic endings.
Some movies just have to end that way.
But no, I don't much like that ending either. It hurts.
In the 60s, killing off the star at the end was so commonplace it was almost a cliche.
THe film that turned the tide on this practice was The Sting.
MORE SPOILERS
In the 60s, killing off the star at the end was so commonplace it was almost a cliche.
THe film that turned the tide on this practice was The Sting.
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...which, ironically enough, starred Paul Newman...and Robert Redford. They died in Butch Cassidy, so we "bought" them dying at the end of "The Sting." And then they didn't. Quite a nifty way not only of "reversing the cliché" but reversing it with exactly the right stars to do so.
And Newman died in Cool Hand Luke, too.
(These are over 40-year old spoilers.)
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Still, I think what makes the "Hombre" ending so cruel and painful is that Newman's character essentially tells the other characters that they are facing death unless they are very, very careful...and then he has to be UN-careful and go out and try to save an utterly irredeemable woman...and then SHE blocks the shot that could have saved him and assured the "Hollywood ending"(Newman planned it right -- he was to kill Boone and the young guy was to kill the Mexican.)
That Newman makes this sacrifice on behalf of the one "decent" character in the movie(Diane Cilento's character) is only worse...her adherence to principle and deceny gets him killed, too.
In short, not only does everything go wrong that can go wrong at the end of "Hombre," but EVERYONE is indicted as venal(Fredric March and wife), weak(Martin Balsam, the young couple) or naïve(Cilento.)
(These are over 40-year old spoilers.)
I never really understood this line of thinking. Just because someone has never read a classic like Of Mice And Men or Great Expectations doesn't make it suddenly okay to spoil it for them because they had the misfortune of being born a century later. It takes no effort to refrain from spoiling something.
~ I'm a 21st century man and I don't wanna be here. share
"I never really understood this line of thinking. Just because someone has never read a classic like Of Mice And Men or Great Expectations doesn't make it suddenly okay to spoil it for them because they had the misfortune of being born a century later. It takes no effort to refrain from spoiling something. "
Well said.
BS. What, am I supposed to not mention how Abe Lincoln died because some numb-nut hasn't heard it yet? I guess if the only important part of a movie is the end, skip the first 90% and watch the end. How can we discuss anything intelligently if we're always concerned about some poor soul having their life ruined by a "spoiler." Grow the heck up !
shareWell the ending was so abrupt and unnecessary. There was no 'message' to justify it. It almost felt out of place.
If there was ever a movie that cried for a proverbial "Hollywood ending" it was this. Wouldn't it be nice if there would be a footage of an alternate ending and they released a DVD with that one?
It would be nice, but I think THIS group of filmmakers wanted to make THAT story, with that ending. No alternate was shot.
But let's ponder one:
Russell heads down the hill, cuts loose Mrs. Favor, she crawls up the hill but does NOT block the young man's shot.
Newman and Boone could still have their great dialogue("You got a lot of hard bark on you, mister, coming down here like this; you put two holes in me") and it would still be tense, but Newman would shoot and kill Boone and the kid would shoot and kill the Mexican, and the audience would cheer...
...and then Russell could climb back up the hill and embrace Cilento and face the cowed and ashamed Favors and tell them he's taking them back to jail.
The End.
But is that really the story Hombre wanted to tell?
I think that awful ending DID have a message, but a bitter one: everything that can go wrong will go wrong, you can get killed defending the wrong people for the right reasons, human venality and weakness will out.
Its a pretty bitter film, when you think about it. When folks -- and not just conservative folks -- accuse Hollywood of embracing unhappy endings and vile views of humanity -- sometimes a movie like "Hombre" says: "Yeah -- so what?"
Good way to visualize a suitable ending. But the message you spoke of was not big enough or clear enough to justify that ending. He could have been shot and survived only to pretty much spit back at the folks he was defending who would try to shower him with fake praise. Or he could just come back up injured and still faced their prejudices making his sacrifice somewhat moot. But the way they built him up as a sympathetic character throughout the film I felt they went for a cheap shock value on us.
BTW, Richard Boone, IMO, was quietly one of the best actors in Cinema or on TV. Never got enough appreciation by the industry. That's a shame.
Good way to visualize a suitable ending. But the message you spoke of was not big enough or clear enough to justify that ending. He could have been shot and survived only to pretty much spit back at the folks he was defending who would try to shower him with fake praise. Or he could just come back up injured and still faced their prejudices making his sacrifice somewhat moot. But the way they built him up as a sympathetic character throughout the film I felt they went for a cheap shock value on us.
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Fair enough. Your point is well taken. I'd say movieghoul is perhaps "on the money": they made the ending that way because back then(and well into the seventies)..killing off the good guy was as usual as NOT killing him in the decades before then.
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BTW, Richard Boone, IMO, was quietly one of the best actors in Cinema or on TV. Never got enough appreciation by the industry. That's a shame.
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He's MY great unsung great. If you'd like to see my discussions of him -- with some very bright other posters -- you can check out my posts on him here, on his page(the Hawaii Five 0 thread) and on the page for his greatest non-Western performance: The Kremlin Letter(1970.)
I would add that Boone "got his due." His TV series "Have Gun Will Travel" made him rich enough to "call his shots" in the years after. Though "The Richard Boone Show"(an attempt to do repertory theater on TV) died after one season, he WAS in demand for movies(usually as a bad guy) and then TV movies(find Goodnight My Love on the net and enjoy), and turned a few big ones down(like The Sting -- the Robert Shaw part.)
That said, his looks and concentration declined in the seventies and in some ways he was his own worst enemy.
But they say any movie star only needs, say, five great roles to matter. And Boone had those five. They just weren't in "classics."
I've just watched Hombre for the umpteenth time as it is one of my favourite films/westerns.I actually like the ending although it is grim and sad.I suppose the film had a tad more realism than earlier Westerns. The real world is good but tragedies happen. Don't get me wrong I still like the oaters where the hero rides or walks off with the girl in the end. Although Russell dies he's still the hero aint he.The scene where Jessie looks sadly over him is very moving.A great Western with top notch acting.
Yes I am also a Richard Boone fan. He is one of my favourite Western actors especially as a baddie.Check out Rio Conchos and The Tall T. The scene in the ticket office is a classic.
Speaking of baddies,David Canary as one of the bandits and Frank Silvera as the Mexican bandit also standout.
I JUST WANT TO KNOW HEES NAME.
I agree Have Gun Will Travel is the best of the old time western series in my opinion. He wanted to continue the series with Paladin going overseas but they cancelled the show.
shareVery true.
shareI too felt the ending detracted from an otherwise great film. But Wikipedia says you are wrong: it was a big box office hit according to them.
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My top 250: http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?user=SlackerInc&perpage=250
ecarle replied Aug 10, 2014
These are over 40-year old spoilers.
What does that have to do with anything? Like a complete piece of garbage you just ruined the ending of at least 4 other, unrelated movies. When you warn of spoilers, it means the movie of the board you're on, not every other movie you want to ruin for people.
People are born every day who haven't seen these movies. Because they weren't alive when the movie came out, and because you're a brainless twit, it's OK to give away endings of old movies?
If I didn't yet see a movie, I don't go to its board. What no one expects is for a clueless loser to start blurting out the endings of other movies.
Are you this moronic and self absorbed in all aspects of your life? You're a real piece of ****. share