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The Petrified Forest (1936)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
8 February 1936 (USA) moreTagline:
AGAIN THEY TRIUMPH!...The stars of 'Human Bondage' in a picture greater than the play!Plot:
A waitress, a hobo and a bank robber get mixed up at a lonely diner in the desert. full summary | full synopsisUser Comments:
The Petrified Forest (1936) ***1/2 moreCast
(Complete credited cast)| Leslie Howard | ... | Alan Squier | |
| Bette Davis | ... | Gabrielle Maple | |
| Genevieve Tobin | ... | Mrs. Chisholm | |
| Dick Foran | ... | Boze Hertzlinger | |
| Humphrey Bogart | ... | Duke Mantee | |
| Joe Sawyer | ... | Jackie (as Joseph Sawyer) | |
| Porter Hall | ... | Jason Maple | |
| Charley Grapewin | ... | Gramp Maple | |
| Paul Harvey | ... | Mr. Chisholm | |
| Eddie Acuff | ... | Lineman | |
| Adrian Morris | ... | Ruby | |
| Nina Campana | ... | Paula | |
| Slim Thompson | ... | Slim | |
| John Alexander | ... | Joseph |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
82 min (Turner library print)Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 moreSound Mix:
MonoCertification:
Canada:PG (video rating) | Germany:16 | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Finland:(Banned) (1936) | USA:Approved (PCA #1751) | Germany:6 | Australia:GFilming Locations:
Red Rock Canyon State Park - Highway 14, Cantil, California, USAFun Stuff
Trivia:
Constance Bergen is in studio records/casting call lists for the role of "Doris," but she did not appear, although her character name is mentioned. moreGoofs:
Continuity: In the scene where the rich couple and their black servant return to the gas station, behind Bogart a window opens. The football jock flinches, the sound of the window hitting open is heard and that sound is repeated when the window actually opens shown by Bogart turning around. moreQuotes:
Gabrielle Maple: Petrified forest is a lot of dead trees in the desert that have turned to stone. Here's a good specimen.Alan Squier: So that was once a tree? Hmmm. Petrified forest, eh? Suitable haven for me. Well, perhaps that's what I'm destined to become, an interesting fossil for future study.
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Soundtrack:
I'd Rather Listen to Your Eyes moreFAQ
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Here is one of the reasons I love old movies so much - intriguing writing, great acting, and interesting characters hold our attention throughout the movie without needing to resort to desperate all-out action, explosions, and computer effects.
Leslie Howard is a gentle intellectual roaming the Arizona desert who happens upon a quaint little cafe/gas station in the middle of nowhere, amidst sand and cactus. He immediately stirs the emotions of big-eyed waitress, Gabby (played by an adorably youthful Bette Davis), who holds a dream of going to France and finding herself in the world. But despite their quick and mutual adoration for one another there is impending tension hovering around their introduction, as news continually escalates about a killer named Duke Mantee (Humphrey Bogart) who's on the run and not far from the diner. Eventually, the infamous gangster shows up with some thugs and takes over the cafe, holding an array of wonderfully colorful characters hostage.
This was originally a play with Leslie Howard and Humphrey Bogart, and leading man Howard reportedly refused to do the picture without Bogie being in it. As a result, this is noteworthy also as Bogart's big breakout movie, and it would only be a few more years before he would hit super-stardom all on his own. Humphrey seems to put a lot into his gangster character, investing Duke with the necessary evil demeanor, yet also with a hint of heart and soul.
Leslie Howard and Bette Davis make a wonderful pair, and both give fine performances; which makes the potentially talky twenty minute scene where they first get acquainted actually completely captivating. Charley Grapewin is delightful and funny as Davis' chattering grandpa.
Dick Foran, playing a strapping and comical football star who pumps gas while always trying to woo Gabby, was very good in this film and it's probably the best work I've seen him do in movies, before he wound up as a "B" player for Universal. His character here is in complete contrast from the heroes and "singing cowboys" I've been used to seeing him play.
At first watch I wasn't completely satisfied with the ending (which I will not reveal) but after thinking about it I came to the decision that it really fit the story well after all, and is actually very poetic.