White Hunter, Black Heart

Something of a sleeper in its 1990 release, White Hunter, Black Heart is one of Clint Eastwood's most engaging films. It is based on Peter Vietel's novel about the location shoot of John Huston's immortal The African Queen. But the focus is never on Bogie and Hepburn. Egomaniacal director John ...more

Though in many ways a departure for Clint Eastwood both as an actor and a director, White Hunter, Black Heart explores a subject close to his heart: the Hemingway-inspired tough-guy artiste, a tradition that stretches beyond the film's ostensible subject, John Huston, to include Eastwood-mentor Don Siegel, and in some respects Eastwood himself. Despite their obvious physical differences, Eastwood's performance instantly evokes Huston while stopping safely short of a mere impersonation. He makes ...more