The city of Garland has planned a spring/summer lineup of movies that will give classic movie fans four reasons to celebrate: “The Treasure of Sierra Madre” – Feb. 10; “On the Waterfront” – March 18; “Dr. Strangelove” – April 22; and “North by Northwest” – June 3.
The FREE screening of these movies will be at the Plaza Theater, 521 W. State St. in downtown Garland.
The first movie on the schedule, “The Treasure of Sierra Madre,” is No. 30 on the American Film Institute’s list of best movies of all time. This black and white movie was made in 1948 and stars Hollywood legend Humphrey Bogart as Fred C. Dobbs.
Based on B. Traven’s 1927 book of the same name, it was adapted for the screen and directed by another Hollywood icon, John Huston. He won Academy Awards for both directing and writing the adapted screenplay. Walter Huston, John’s father, stars in this classic and won an Academy Award for best supporting actor in the film.
After witnessing the acting skills of Walter, Bogart said, “One Huston is bad enough, but two are murder.”
Bogart and John had worked together on John’s first directorial effort. The film was “The Maltese Falcon,” a huge success for both the actor and director, and they were anxious to work together again.
Other featured actors are Tim Holt, Bruce Bennett, Barton MacLane, Alfonso Bedoya and Arturo Soto Rangel.
“The Treasure of the Sierra Madre” has the distinction of being the first movie ever to be filmed on location. Parts were filmed in Mexico and the remainder was filmed in the United States.
The film also brought us the famous, often misquoted “stinkin’ badges” dialogue. In the movie, the character named Gold Hat, the leader of a gang of bandits, tells Bogart’s character, Dobbs, that the bandits are Federales. Dobbs asks where their badges are. Gold Hat’s response is, “Badges? We ain’t got no badges. We don’t need no badges. I don’t h
ave to show you any stinkin’ badges.”
The quote, which is No. 36 on the AFI’s list of 100 best movie quotes of all time, is frequently misquoted as, “Badges? We don’t need no stinkin’ badges.”
Either way, it is one of the most memorable bits of dialogue ever captured on film.
In addition to being great entertainment, “The Treasure of Sierra Madre” is an in-depth study of greed and the inevitable destruction it causes. It does not only harm the person who suffers from the malady, it also negatively affects all those associated with him.
FYI: Turner Classic Movies works with an entertainment outlet called Fathom Events to bring classic movies to the big screen. The movies are usually shown in only one theater in the area, which is currently the AMC Northpark 15 – not your hometown historic theater – and there is no cost comparison.
For example, a classic movie enthusiast can choose to see the Cary Grant classic “North by Northwest” in downtown Garland free of charge in June or drive to Northpark in March and pay more than $13 to see it. An added benefit to seeing the classics in Garland – drinks and snacks are $2.00 each and proceeds go to a Garland ISD robotics program.
Information about the other movies in the series will follow.