"What she's got you couldn't spell - and what you've got, you used to have."

In his second screen appearance in color of 1954, Humphrey Bogart appeared as a director who is washed up, that is until he finds a young dancer in the streets of Madrid who he helps make a star.

The Barefoot Contessa (1954) is many things. It is long. It is only the second color movie Bogie appeared in up to this point. It features Ava Gardner and Joseph Mankiewicz. Its biggest drawback though, is its characters. None can be rooted for, except maybe the Contessa, played by Gardner. This makes the movie hard to watch since it is so long, at over two hours.

Mankiewicz had been famous for his behind-the-scenes look at Broadway in All About Eve (1950). Here he tried to expose the behind-the-scenes world of Hollywood. It doesn’t work quite as well as something like In a Lonely Place (1950). Instead of taking a hard look at all the evils of Hollywood, like Mankiewicz did for Broadway, this movie seems to be lacking the same punch. It isn’t because of the characters though. There are plenty of evil doers here, it is just that the Cinderella Contessa is meant to feel too much audience sympathy. This isn’t quite on the level of Charlie Chaplin sentimentality, but at least in Chaplin you had great comedy, this is still too sentimental for most people.

Bogie is washed up director Harry Dawes, who makes a trip to Madrid in order to see Maria Vargas. In a typical move, Vargas is in a tough situation at home, but Bogie promises the opportunity to star in a Hollywood movie. Actually this promise is made by press agent, Oscar Muldoon, played by Edmond O’Brien. Bogie promises to watch out for the young girl in America.

He keeps his promise and even though he happens to be a drunkard with a tough personality, he is the most sympathetic character to the new star. O’Brien, who won an Oscar for his performance, is great as the press agent who has no guts. The movie’s producer, Kirk Edwards, is a bully. Now, to the cynic this might seem like a perfect portrayal of the typical Hollywood types. These old men with no talent are taking advantage of a young girl. That is all true, but it gets worse for our Contessa.

She happens to become a huge star who is known throughout the world. She happens to be smitten by someone she believes to be a charming prince. He happens to be a count, thus she becomes a contessa. Anyway, this marriage made in heaven is not so. The count has his own problems and our friend the contessa develops her own. The movie doesn’t end pleasantly.

During the shooting, the mood on the set between the two stars Gardner and Bogie was not pleasant either. Gardner was on the outs with husband Frank Sinatra. Bogie happened to be good friends with Sinatra. The two were in the Rat Pack together. Or the Holmby Hills Rat Pack as it was known at this point. The group was named by Lauren Bacall one night after a hard night of partying in Vegas. She said the group she saw in the hotel room looked “like a damn rat pack.” The name stuck and the group became famous after the passing of Bogie and Sinatra took over the reins.

Anyway, the tension on the set did not make it onto the film stock. Bogie was the best friend the Contessa had. Mankiewicz wanted to make a movie about the evils of Hollywood. He succeeded in doing this, but there just isn’t enough bite in the Contessa to make the movie seem completely believable. There was plenty of bite in the Eve character Mankiewicz created four years prior. That was lacking in this movie and it hurt it as a result.

"And how do you say I wish I were my brother?"

Sabrina is not really a Humphrey Bogart movie. It’s a comedy that is stolen by Audrey Hepburn. This is a rare occurrence for Bogie. Typically he’s playing some sort of cynical idealist in a drama, here he is the rich businessman without a heart in a comedy. He performs well, but not as well as Hepburn does in the role of Cinderella or Sabrina.

The 1954 film was written and directed by Billy Wilder. It was based on the hit play Sabrina Fair by Samuel Taylor. It involves a chauffeurs daughter, who growing up has been madly in love with the younger brother of a rich family on Long Island. She travels to Paris for cooking school and when she gets back, it is the older brother who she falls in love with. Of course the only reason why the older brother, who has never been in love before, pretends to like Sabrina is because dissolving her crush on the younger brother would allow a major business deal to go through.

Bogie did not fare well on the set. He was out of his element with the people around him. There was no John Huston to drink with after hours. There was no Peter Lorre to help play practical jokes with. There was Billy Wilder, Audrey Hepburn and William Holden on the set. All three knew each other and got along wonderfully. Bogie basically felt left out and stuck to himself while on the set.

He had a great respect for Billy Wilder. Wilder was a master at the farce, his movie Some Like It Hot (1959) was named the number one comedy of all time by the American Film Institute. He had already come off success with Sunset Boulevard (1950) and The Lost Weekend (1945). His comedic touch was perfected here in Sabrina and carried over throughout the rest of the 1950s.

The relationship between Bogie and Hepburn was not a good one. Bogie despised her on the set. He complained that she never knew her lines and that it took too many takes to get her scenes right. Because Hepburn was familiar with Wilder, he felt the director was not hard enough on the actress. This further alienated him.

As for Holden, Bogie didn’t really get along with him because they came at it with two different acting styles. Holden was a Method Actor, while Bogie was a naturalistic one. Since the Method style was replacing the naturalistic style at this time, Bogie became paranoid. He figured that since Holden and Wilder were friends, Hepburn would end up falling for Holden’s character at the end of the movie. Of course everyone, including Bogie, realized that this would be the smart thing for Hepburn’s character to do. The only reason why this didn’t happen is because, as Wilder pointed out, Bogie was the highest paid actor on the set. He had to walk away with the girl if he was being paid that much money.

Once the movie was finished shooting, Bogie was surprised at how good it was. Critics were surprised that Bogie could actually pass as a comedic actor. The fans absolutely loved the movie. It is still a special film to watch today. It was remade recently by Harrison Ford, but you can’t tell me that a movie with Harrison Ford is going to be better than one starring Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn, William Holden and directed by Billy Wilder.

Sabrina has good acting for the stars and great writing, but the secondary characters stand out as well, especially Walter Hampden as the father of the rich family. Hitchcock fans will also recognize the chauffeur as John Williams, who appeared in the most Hitchcock movies.

"Ahh, but the strawberries that's... that's where I had them."

The year 1954 would be a great one for Humphrey Bogart. He would have four movies released that year. It would be the last time in his career that he would have so many movies released in one year. The first to be released was the quirky Beat the Devil. The next was probably the best of the four, The Caine Mutiny. The other two were stellar as well and will be looked at this week.

Herman Wouk won a Pulitzer Prize for the book, “The Caine Mutiny.” It was an enticing project for any production company. Stanley Kramer was fortunate enough to acquire the rights to the book. He got a distribution deal through Columbia Pictures and was immediately in business. Two major stars, Bogie and Fred MacMurray, were signed on. Van Johnson and Jose Ferrer were added to make the cast something special. It is interesting to note, that much like The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), Bogie is surrounded by talented male actors. The typical Hollywood formula dictates that there needs to be a big male and big female role in order to make a success. This movie didn’t need that.

What it has is great performances. Bogie, who was nominated for his third Academy Award, is perfect as the paranoid Captain Queeg, new commander of the U.S.S. Caine, a destroyer/mine sweeper in the Pacific.

Queeg is the new sheriff in town. The Caine had been run by a lax commander. The crew of the ship understood that the Caine wasn’t going to see much action, due to it being an ancient ship. So things were relaxed before Queeg appeared. MacMurray and Johnson play officers on the ship who clash at times with Queeg’s paranoid personality.

Queeg happens to do everything by the book and allows these strict regulations to interfere with important tasks. Such as his first task as new captain of the Caine involves tugging targets out so that destroyers can practice. Queeg gets so angry at one of his men for an untucked shirt, that he doesn’t realize his ship has cut its tow line, costing the government money.

MacMurray’s character, the wannabe novelist, Lt. Keefer, picks up quickly on Queeg’s perceived paranoia. He gets the other officers to believe that there is something psychologically wrong with their captain. This point is perfectly demonstrated when the Caine is involved in leading an invasion of an island. While the other boats in the Caine’s class continue toward the island to help support the drop boats, the Caine pulls up short as Queeg becomes afraid of the ship being damaged by enemy fire. This earns Queeg the nickname of “Old Yellow Spot.”

Things don’t get better for the crew of the Caine though. The captain makes a big deal over what he believes is some stolen strawberries. This comical scene is famous and it also helps prove Keefer’s point that the captain is crazy.

That is not all though, because during a terrible storm, Queeg is forced to make a decision about what to do. He wants to stay the course and whether the storm, even though his advisors have told him that it would mean certain suicide. This is where the movie gets its name from, spurred on by Keefer, the leadership on the Caine switches from Queeg to executive officer Maryk, played by Van Johnson. The Caine mutiny has occurred and Queeg makes sure Maryk is brought before a court marshal.

Here Lt. Greenwald, Jose Ferrer, defends Maryk. Expecting some help from Keefer, Maryk is disappointed when Keefer acts just as cowardly as Queeg does when he testifies. So in a desperate attempt to save his client, Lt. Greenwald has to push the unstable Queeg, to prove the instability present in the ships commander. This is the best scene in the movie and the one that earned Bogie his Oscar nomination. Rolling steel balls in his hands, Queeg breaks down on the stand. The speech is one of the best acted in film history.

Of course, Queeg’s testimony proves that he is missing something upstairs, so Maryk isn’t court-martialed. The ending involves a bittersweet crew of the Caine drinking champagne. Maryk knows Keefer is a coward and Greenwald is disappointed that the Navy is losing one of its most loyal captains. It is a fitting ending to a movie that has been well crafted throughout. The Caine Mutiny is a fantastic watch today and has been restored well on DVD.

"Do you know what I say? I say time is a crook."

By the year 1953 things were winding down for Humphrey Bogart. He had won his only Academy Award. It had been over a decade since he played Rick Blaine in Casablanca (1942). It would be time for him to end his film partnerships with John Huston and Peter Lorre.

The successful cast and crew of The Maltese Falcon (1941) would join once again for 1953’s Beat the Devil. At least, that was the idea. Beat the Devil is more of a parody of the classic film noirs in which Bogie, Lorre and Huston made. It would be the final time for the three to work together. Sydney Greenstreet, the normal rotund bad guy, had retired from acting. He is replaced in this movie by Robert Morley, who had appeared in The African Queen (1951) with Bogie as Katherine Hepburn’s missionary brother.

Here the cast is in Italy. The story is odd and all over the place. This is probably because the script was being written day by day. Truman Capote worked with Huston on the script. For the most part, the movie is just about Bogie, Morely and Lorre having a good time together. Huston focuses much more on this than an actual story. The three seem to enjoy each others company and Jennifer Jones and Gina Lollobrigida seem to go along for the ride. Lollobrigida was making her American film debut.

Basically, Bogie is a con man. He happens to team up with a group of four men, led by Lorre and Morely, who are after uranium deposits in Kenya. Actually, “team up” isn’t the right phrase. Apparently Bogie isn’t the suave gentleman he acts like while interacting with wife Gina Lollobrigida. He happens to be a low-life who doesn’t have any money. He owes the four men some money. He placates them by saying they can go to Kenya with him to claim the uranium. Of course the four agree and the majority of the movie is spent waiting for a steamer to take the group to Kenya.

Once on board, high jinks ensue and when they arrive in Kenya, it is not what they expect. Here is The Maltese Falcon reference. It is not about the jeweled bird, or the uranium in this case, but about the quest for something unattainable and what human beings will do to get it. It is a common theme throughout Huston’s work. It is at its most comical here. The group is arrested by natives, but Bogie happens to sweet talk the chief and the group escapes. They end up back in Italy and the movie comes to a close.

When it was released, Beat the Devil did not do well at the box office. In later years, the movie became appreciated for the people who appeared and worked on it. It never made money for Bogie and he was disappointed in that. He himself never liked the film. In fact, it did so poorly, the copyright was not renewed and the movie is currently in the public domain. This might be one of the reasons why the prints of the movie are not of high quality, even on DVD.

This seems to be a movie that you are either a fan of, or you can’t stand. Personally, I think it has some strong points, but the talent associated with it deserved better. Not a great final picture for the trio of Lorre, Bogie and Huston.

"One thing in the world I hate: leeches. Filthy little devils."

The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences is odd. Every year the Oscars seem to be more political than about who is the most talented. People like Humphrey Bogart, John Wayne and Alfred Hitchcock won only an Oscar apiece. Hitchcock received his for lifetime achievement, not best director. Groucho Marx is the same story. For some reason, these legends of the screen were only allowed to win one Oscar. Their work has lasted over 75 years in some cases, yet they were underappreciated by the Academy when they were alive. Maybe that is because they were too popular with the public and the Academy preferred to reward “artistic” performers.

No matter though, the Academy does some great work. For Humphrey Bogart though, like the others, it was hard to see your name at the top of box office lists year in and year out, yet never be able to hold an Oscar. He had been nominated before, for Casablanca (1942), but didn’t win. He gave his best performance in Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948), yet didn’t even get nominated. So when he was nominated for The African Queen (1951), there was much doubt as to Bogie’s winning the award. The favorite to win was Marlon Brando for his performance in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951).

As the Academy tends to do, there was an upset and the favored Brando would have to wait three more years before winning his first Academy Award. Bogie received the award for playing the drunken, yet lovable Charlie Allnut.

The story surrounding The African Queen is famous. It was recounted brilliantly by Bogie’s co-star, the tremendous actress Katherine Hepburn in “The Making of The African Queen – Or How I Went to Africa With Bogart, Bacall and Huston and Almost Lost My Mind.”

Before arriving in Africa though, there were some things that needed to be changed in the screenplay that had appeared in C.S. Forester’s novel. Namely, the Allnut character had to become Canadian and not English. In the novel, Allnut was written to have a strong Cockney accent. Bogie was unable to do this, so the screenplay was rewritten so that he could speak “normally.” That’s how you win an Academy Award.

John Huston was famous for taking his cast and crew to the farthest ends of the Earth during location shoots. Traveling through Africa was a dream for him. He had a blast on the trip. While not shooting the picture, he was off shooting game. At nights, he and Bogie would take shots, much to the annoyance of Katherine Hepburn.

Bogie and Huston got the last laugh. Everyone on the location shoot ended up getting sick because of the mosquitoes and tainted water. Bogie and Huston only drank Scotch on the trip. The Scotch provided protection for the two whenever a mosquito bit them, Bogie joked.

The African Queen is a fairly interesting because of the interaction between Hepburn and Bogie. There really is no change in Bogie’s character from previous movies. He is the cynical, drunkard who is inspired by a woman who he falls in love with to change his ways and join the side of right. Hepburn plays the idealistic sister of a British missionary. The chemistry between the two is great.

On a rather tragic note, Bogie and Bacall had a death in the family while filming began. Bogie and Bacall left for London, where studio work was done for The African Queen. As the plane left, Stephen, their son, and his nanny stood waving at the plane. Unfortunately, the nanny had a stroke, collapsed, and died right there. It was the first time his parents had ever left him alone and his nanny died minutes after their plane left. Needless to say, that probably had a serious affect on Stephen. He has managed to be a fairly successful author, but has struggled to come to grips with his famous father. Perhaps this is a reason why.

The African Queen is a great movie because there is a small cast. Bogie and Hepburn control most of the screen time. Because we go on a thrilling journey through the heart of Africa, with such wonderful guides, we remember this movie. Maybe that is why the Academy remembered Bogie come Oscar time.

"It was his story against mine, but of course, I told my story better. "

A Humphrey Bogart movie that is often overlooked, but tremendous is In a Lonely Place (1950). The movie was produced by Santana Pictures. I don’t quite know why it is overlooked by those writing about Humphrey Bogart. It is almost as if his career went from Treasure of the Sierra Madre to The African Queen (1951). There were a string of movies in between, most not worthy of mention, but In A Lonely Place is certainly worth noting.

Perhaps it is worth noting because according to most people who knew Bogie, the Dixon Steele character he played in the movie was the closest to the real person. At least when Bogie got drunk that is.

Dixon Steele is a washed-up screenwriter. He still has connections in the business though and actually gets an offer to adapt a novel for the screen. The problem is, Steele doesn’t want to read the book. So he has the hat check girl at the restaurant his meeting is being held at finish reading the book and then tell him the plot. Of course, being a writer, Steele can’t work in a restaurant, he wants the comforts of home. So he takes the girl home with him.

She has to break a date with her boyfriend, but doesn’t seem to mind the chance to help a Hollywood screenwriter. The girl recites the novel’s plot to Steele, who is not amused. Anyway, it is late and Steele is tired, so he sends the girl out into the cruel night with some money for a cab.

A few hours later, there is a knock on Bogie’s door and the police come to question him. Apparently the girl was murdered and Bogie was the last one to see her. He has to fight off the police and his only friend is neighbor Laurel Gray, played by Gloria Grahame. The small-time actress takes a liking to Bogie’s face and the two fall for each other.

This inspires Steele to write and the couple plans on getting married after this unfortunate incident with the police is cleared up. Unfortunately for their plans, Steele posses a temper. One that can inflict violence on another person. So the question is posed to the audience, did Dixon Steele commit murder? He certainly seems capable of doing it.

This is a good film noir. It is directed by Nicholas Ray, who directed Bogie in Knock on Any Door. It was based on the novel written by Dorothy B. Hughes, who wrote crime novels. This one takes place in Los Angeles, but the author spent most of her life in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

One of the reasons why this movie might not get as much attention as it should have, is because it came out in a year when movies about the underworld of Hollywood were popular. Sunset Boulevard and All About Eve got all the attention that year. Perhaps it was because they had more established stars and directors working on them. Plus they had the benefit of being produced by Paramount and 20^th Century Fox respectively. Had Bogie’s company not produced the movie and had there been bigger stars to join him on screen, the movie would have gotten more attention. Of course it might not have been as good as it turned out to be. At least today’s audiences have an opportunity to see this forgotten classic.

"Live fast, die young, leave a good-looking corpse."

As mentioned previously, Humphrey Bogart was a huge star who could dictate what roles he wanted to play and who directed his pictures. This was a rarity in the 1940s. With the coming of the 50s, the old Hollywood studio system began to fall apart. Independent production companies were sprouting up as Congress began to investigate the monopoly in the movie industry. A select few stars created their own production companies during this period. Humphrey Bogart was one of them. His company, Santana Productions, produced four movies before being ruled a failure commercially. Santana was taken from Bogie’s yacht, not the guitar player.

The idea behind Santana was to have Bogie take a good story and include talented young actors and directors in the making of the movie. He would star to add box office weight and provide guidance to the younger people. The first movie produced by Santana was Knock on Any Door (1949).

Bogie plays a defense lawyer who has the tough task of proving career criminal Nick Romano, played by John Derek. Romano has come from the slums, just as Bogie’s character, Andrew Morton, has. Romano’s father died while in prison, Morton had been hired to defend Romano’s father, but failed to get him off. The Romano family blamed Morton for the father’s death. Morton felt terrible for what happened, but it wasn’t good enough for Nick. Nick quickly joined the wrong crowd and we see how Morton tried to step in each time to help Nick out. It didn’t work and now Nick is on trial for his life. He has been accused of shooting a police officer.

This is all standard film-noir, courtroom stuff. What makes this different is the fact that Bogie is playing the lawyer, not the criminal. When Bogie was Derek’s age he probably would have been Romano’s character, while Edward G. Robinson or James Cagney would be Morton. It just shows the growth of Bogie’s career in a decade.

As with most Hollywood movies that are not outstanding, this one suffers from what might have been. Originally, Marlon Brando was slated to play the role of Nick Romano. John Derek gives a capable performance, but he is no Brando. It would have been one of those rare movies in which you could see two greats with opposite styles of acting come together on-screen. Brando was famous for The Method technique, while Bogie was a naturalistic actor.

Anyway, had the Brando and Bogie tandem worked, the movie would have been produced by Mark Hellinger, not Santana. Hellinger had the rights to the book and had both Brando and Bogie on board. He unfortunately passed away before the movie could be made. Santana acquired the rights and made the movie with John Derek, since Brando’s man Hellinger was no longer involved in the project.

Nicholas Ray was brought on to direct. This was one of his first films, yet he seems completely comfortable in the film noir genre. He would go on to direct James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause (1955).

Overall, Knock on Any Door is a quality picture. It is perfect for the film noir fans. But all the attention paid to the Romano character just doesn’t seem worth it when he isn’t played by Marlon Brando.

"Show it your gun, why don't you? If it doesn't stop, shoot it."

The screen tandem of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall only appeared in four movies. The last of these four was Key Largo (1948). It can be argued that it is the best of the four, but even if it is not, the movie doesn’t lack star power in front of the camera or behind it.

Key Largo is basically a recycled gangster picture from the 1930s, just set in the 1940s. What makes this movie so different from the other gangster pictures Bogie made or those pictures in which he is the cynical hero, is that this movie features tremendous performances and on-point camera work and direction.

Bogie plays Frank McCloud, a decorated World War II veteran who comes to Florida to find the father and widow of a soldier McCloud served with. The widow is played by Lauren Bacall. The father, who happens to be the owner of a hotel in Key Largo, is played by Lionel Barrymore. Of course this little family reunion of sorts, actually it is more of a remembrance, is a touching event, but doesn’t make for a good story. What is missing is a bad guy. The bad guy shows up in the form of Edward G. Robinson as Johnny Rocco.

Robinson plays a similar character to his Little Caesar. It is as if we see what might have happened to Little Caesar 15 years later had he not been killed. Rocco is the last gangster out there. He has been on the run for a few years, but has now decided to make his return to America. He is waiting at the out-of-season hotel in order to buy time while his friends stop by to make a deal that will get Rocco enough capital to restart his empire.

As is typical in gangster pictures, the gangster begins to bark out orders and dominates the place he is staying at. He holds Bogie, Bacall and Barrymore hostage. Claire Trevor won an Oscar for best supporting actress as the drunken ex-girlfriend of Rocco. Since Rocco has been away for so long, he can’t believe the changes he has seen in the once beautiful girl.

In Key Largo, Bogie is the only one who can stop the gangsters. Barrymore is confined to a wheelchair, Bacall and Trevor can’t take on Rocco and his gang and there are no other guests in the hotel. To make matters worse, there is a hurricane, so no police can be called. Bogie decides at first not to fight the gangsters, figuring it isn’t worth the price he could pay. But like Rick Blaine and many other characters Bogie played, Frank McCloud turns over a new leaf and fights back.

Key Largo was a play written in 1939 by Maxwell Anderson. It involved a Spanish Civil War veteran who was a coward and deserted. He went to seek out the family of a great hero who had died in the war. When the gangsters appear, the coward sees this as a chance to regain some respect. He ends up being killed by the gangsters and when the police come to ask who the dead man is, the father replies he was his son who had been a great Spanish Civil War hero.

This is all very nice and touching, but would never fly in Hollywood. So John Huston went to work on a more Hollywood story. He came up with some good changes and brought his story to life through the great cast. His direction is good, but the cinematography is special here. Karl Freund, who was cinematographer on Dracula (1931) and Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (1927), did a masterful job of creating eerie shadows during the hurricane. The black-and-white cinematography is well done.

Key Largo is packed with some of the best of Hollywood’s Golden Age. Bogie, Bacall, Barrymore, Trevor and Robinson are all great in their roles. There is even a brief appearance by the Native American actor Jay Silverheels, who would go on to become Tonto, the friend of the Lone Ranger. The quality isn’t just in front of the camera though, the original story was written by Maxwell Anderson, John Huston co-wrote the screenplay and directed and Karl Freund put his skills with the camera to good use here. This makes Key Largo and great sendoff to the screen tandem of Bogie and Bacall.

"Badges? We ain't got no badges."

Humphrey Bogart was the biggest star in the world in 1947. He used his box office stardom as a vehicle to get him the largest contract in Hollywood history at that point. He also received some power from Warner Bros. – namely script and director approval. His first major movie with the new power was The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948).

The script for the movie had been on the shelves of the Warner lot for many years. They were just waiting for the right writer to come along and work out some kinks. The writer would be John Huston, who had returned from working for the government making films during World War II. This was a movie he wanted to make before the war, but was unable to.

Sierra Madre was based on the book by B. Traven. Traven was a mysterious man who never showed his face and enjoyed great fame by being anonymous. He was rumored to be a Communist and one of his stipulations in selling the rights to any of his books was that it could not be sold to any capitalist country. Some how, Warners got the rights.

For a major star, the role of Fred C. Dobbs was a risk. Even the movie itself was a risk. There is no female lead and really no females in the story at all – the only ones who appear do so in the background of the Indian camp. This is a male dominated movie, which might turn some people off. It is also a deeply moralistic one, which makes it worth watching.

Three American prospectors: Howard, Curtin and Dobbs, traverse the wilderness of Mexico in search for gold. Upon reaching the mountains and finding their fortune, some strange things happen to the characters. Howard, played by Walter Huston, is the old man who has been through the battles. He knows how to prospect and is only brought along by the two younger men because of his knowledge. He predicts that once the gold is found, the power of it will change the two younger men. He is right in his prediction, but is basically powerless to stop the greed. He volunteers to help a group of Indians who have a sick child. He saves the child’s life and is asked to be the medicine man for the Indians. Howard enjoys his role as the sage with the Indians more than he did with the young Americans.

Curtin is a different man. He seems to be the same type of man as Dobbs in the beginning. The two of them meet while working in the town of Tampico. The two are American outcasts, so they join forces. When the man who hired them doesn’t pay them, Dobbs and Curtin take the boss for a little ride to get their money. With their money, they find Howard and take off for the Mexican mountains. Curtin reacts the most admirably of the two youngsters. The gold takes hold of him, he even thinks seriously about Dobbs’ suggestion that they take Howard’s gold while he is off at the Indian camp. But in the end, Curtin is not corrupted by the gold. In fact, when the gold is lost in the wind, Curtin looks at it as a blessing. He is now free to pursue his dream of a farm, while not having to worry about protecting his fortune.

Dobbs is pure evil. This is a change that most major Hollywood stars would never make. Bogie did it, playing the bad guy, and was successful in it. Dobbs is what makes the movie. His decent into madness is something special to watch. It is also something that would not have happened had another actor played the role. Bogie had plenty of experience playing the evil gangster and the man with morals. In Tampico, Bogie has some morals. He fights for his money when he and Curtin are taken for a ride by their employer. He seeks out Howard and puts up Curtin’s half for the expedition. But when that gold power comes rolling in, Dobbs becomes paranoid. He believes the two other men are trying to take his gold. In order to prevent this, he decides to take theirs.

He encourages Howard to go to the Indian camp. Then when Howard is away, he tries killing Curtin. Believing he has been successful, he takes Howard’s and Curtin’s gold, along with his, and tries to make it back to Tampico. He almost makes it, but some Mexican bandits stop him and kill him. The bandits are after guns and money; they believe the pouches the burros are carrying are filled with sand. So they dump all the gold out of the pouches in order to make it into town to sell the burros.

Their plot is stopped and they are rounded up and executed. By the time Curtin comes around and finds Howard at the Indian camp, none of the gold can be found as a wind storm has scattered the power throughout the desert.

Sierra Madre is the best performance of Bogart’s career, yet he was not nominated for an Academy Award. The picture won two awards. John Huston took home the best director Oscar and his father, Walter, took home the best supporting actor award.