Unforgiven JY

In Unforgiven the role that Morgan Freeman plays is one of an Africa American farm worker who was once a killer along with his partner William Munny (Clint Eastwood). Morgan Freeman’s character Ned Logan is depicted as equal to William Munny even though he is African American. Before revisionist films African Americans would have never had such a significant role. But now in the 1990’s westerns African Americans are given more power. Although Ned Logan is depicted as an equal to Munny he is still scrutinized for being African American. For example he is the only one of the three cowboys who is captured, tortured, and killed. This just goes to show that although African Americans in the United States in the 1990’s were given the same rights as whites they were also still discriminated against.

Clint Eastwood’s character William Munny, like Ned, was a killer when he was younger but after settling down with a wife and kids he stopped killing and became a farmer. Twelve years later he tries to go back to his old ways but finds out he can’t even shoot a water canteen or mount a horse. Munny is depicted as a washed up cowboy and is too old for the western lifestyle. But after his partner, Ned Logan, dies Munny seems to get his old skill back and ends up killing a handful of armed men by himself. Just as Munny changed after Ned died so did westerns after these revisionist films. Munny transforms into a darker cowboy figure than we are used to seeing in westerns. You could even consider Munny an antihero because although he is a hero in the film he has qualities that are not like our usual western heroes. His character personifies why Unforgiven is a revisionist film. In these revisionist films the focus is more on the realism of the west rather than the romanticism. The movie isn’t based around a cowboy and a girl like the older classic westerns were but more around the fighting and the unlawfulness of the west. Even the Marshall who is supposed to be the law of his county seems to live with no rules or laws.