Expertly directed by John Huston (The Maltese Falcon) from a screenplay by Pulitzer Prize winner Arthur Miller, The Misfits is a probing, exciting drama (The Film Daily) of honesty, intensity and sheer poetic brilliance. Divorced and disillusioned, Roslyn Tabor (Marilyn Monroe) befriends a group of misfits, including an aging cowboy (Clark Gable), a heartbroken mechanic (Eli Wallach) and a worn-out rodeo rider (Montgomery Clift). Through their live-for-the-moment lifestyle, Roslyn experiences her first taste of freedom, exhilaration and passion. But when her innocent idealism clashes with their hard-edged practicality, Roslyn must risk losing their friendship…and the only true love she’s ever known.It was the last roundup for Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe, who gave their final performances in this melancholy modern Western. Arthur Miller wrote the script (some say overwrote) as a contemplation of his then-wife, Monroe, and set the piece in the half-world of Reno, Nevada. The dangers of this kind of meta-fictional approach are not entirely avoided, but the clean, clear-eyed direction of John Huston keeps the film grounded. And then there are the people: Gable a warrior past his time, Monroe overwhelmed by the world and its attentions, Montgomery Clift visibly broken in pieces, Eli Wallach a postwar neurotic. If the encroaching mortality of Gable, Monroe, and Clift weren’t enough, the stark photography and Alex North’s score confirm this as a film about loss. It may have its problems, but seen at a distance of many years, The Misfits scatters its tender mercies with an aching beauty. –Robert Horton
Buy “The Misfits” For Only $4.09
Related Blogs
- Related Blogs on Misfits
- The never ending misfits of a seemingly 'cute' creature …
May 9, 2010
#1
Blonde gets divorce in Reno, and proceeds to hang out with a group of guys who catch wild horses and sell them for dog food.
May 9, 2010
#2
This film didn’t keep my attention at all. I truly think it has been over hyped because it was the last completed film for Gable and Monroe. It was not at all a film I would picture Marilyn Monroe in. That is probably exactly what she wanted, a film allowing her to go beyond and expand her acting credibility… I felt there was more chemistry between Clift & Monroe than Gable & Monroe; so the latter pair being the hook up didn’t fly for me. Marilyn Monroe is my absolute favorite but this just wasn’t for me. I regret buying it instead of just renting it, as I will never watch it again.
May 9, 2010
#3
The film opens with a broken-down car (is the dead battery symbolism?). A young woman is rehearsing her testimony for her divorce in Reno. We see another woman leaving by train. A mechanic makes plans with an older man to go into the wild and capture horses. The invite the woman to go with them. [It is a slow starting film.] The dialogue brings out the personality of each character. The group starts out with a drink of whiskey (more symbolism?) “You can’t change things” seems to be their working philosophy (see the title). So they have another drink of whiskey.
On the way to the rodeo they find the third man they will need for “mustanging” (capturing wild horses for sale). A paddle and ball allows Roslyn to show her skills and win well over $100. The third man Pierce doesn’t do well on a horse or bull. His attitude shows when they are drinking again (does he know his limits?). Their drinking brings out their problems. Finally they set out on the hunt. An old biplane is used to drive the horses into the trap. But only a few horses were found. They lasso a horse with a rope tied to an old tire. It takes three men to bring down the stallion. Roslyn’s idealism drives her to an emotional outburst; she doesn’t understand how to “live in harmony with nature”. Does she know the purpose of those cattle drives in the Old West? She convinces Pierce to free the captured horses. Gabe captures the stallion again; then he sets it free. This wins Roslyn’s approval. And so the film ends. Roslyn used to be a professional dancer; she danced with men for money.
The message in this story is that those who are self-employed are “misfits” in a world where most people work for wages. Only big corporations should be allowed to exploit natural resources. [I don't believe that, do you?] The film doesn’t explain how they can live in the desert without a water supply. The monetary figures are far out of date. There is one scene where you can see the extinct specie of silver coins. This film would have been better if it had a sound track (Hank Williams’ songs would be appropriate). For outdoors men they all lack the expected tan skin. This film is slow moving and talky. I wonder if it was made to create a paper loss (Hollywood accounting) to offset a bigger grossing film?
May 9, 2010
#4
First of all, I will say I am a big Marilyn fan, and for that reason alone would buy this movie. She is incredibly beautiful in her last complete film, and her acting is wonderful. Her charisma alone gets this poorly written, pretentious movie three stars. I do remember reading a quote from Marilyn, referring to this movie script, in which she said “He could have written me anything, and he comes up with this. If that’s what he thinks of me, well, then, I’m not for him and he’s not for me.” Obviously she did not care for the script too much. It is truly horrible, probably the worst written rubbish ever taken seriously, but only by pseudo-intellectuals who assume anything by Arthur Miller will be up to the standards of “Death of a Salesman”. It isn’t. It is so pretentious, corny, contrived, and manipulative it never fails to disgust, degrade(you feel stupid even watching something so inane) and offend. Still, Marilyn is magical and she can make any movie watchable. This movie proves it.
I would recommend this only for Marilyn fans, and then without reservation. She is just so beautiful in this movie, and the image of her radiant face lasts longer than the revulsion from the insipid, hackneyed dialogue.
May 9, 2010
#5
Oh, how I wanted to love this movie. It was the last movie for both Gable and Monroe, it was set in the beautiful southwest (Reno to be exact), and it was to be a movie about free-spirits finding each other. The movie started out great, with a great opening scene with Thelma Ritter.
Unfortunately, that is the last high point of the movie. In addition to accepting the unbelievable romance between sixty year old Gable and 35-year-old Marilyn, we were supposed to feel something for these characters. Not an easy thing to ask of the viewer. Wallach, Clift and Gable played dispicable, drunken losers, and Marilyn was a woman bereft of any capability to recognize it. These were all people that I wouldn’t even bother with if I met them on the street. Why am I supposed to care about them?
So sad that Gable and Monroe went out on this note. The only value in seeing this movie is purely historical.