White Hunter, Black Heart

"An adventure in obsession..."

1990 1h 52m EN

😐

6.4

MID

🍅

84%

FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

6.5

IMDB

★6.4TMDB · 326🍅84%Rotten Tomatoes●66Metacritic★6.5IMDB · 13,509

AdventureDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Renowned filmmaker John Wilson travels to Africa to direct a new movie, but constantly leaves to hunt elephants and other game, to the dismay of his cast and crew. He eventually becomes obsessed with hunting down and killing one specific elephant.

“An adventure in obsession...”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Clint Eastwood
John Wilson
Jeff Fahey
Pete Verrill
George Dzundza
Paul Landers
Alun Armstrong
Ralph Lockhart
Mel Martin
Mrs. Macgregor
Clive Mantle
Harry
Timothy Spall
Hodkins
Catherine Neilson
Irene Saunders

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Clint Eastwood
Writers: Peter Viertel, James Bridges, Burt Kennedy
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 10% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

36 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Clint Eastwood, shot by Jack N. Green. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Lennie Niehaus. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Joel Cox shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Clint Eastwood and Jeff Fahey and George Dzundza carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "An adventure in obsession...".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0100928 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Clint Eastwood directs. Jack N. Green behind the camera. Lennie Niehaus scores. Joel Cox cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 10% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
236 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Clint Eastwood, shot by Jack N. Green. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Lennie Niehaus. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Joel Cox shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Clint Eastwood and Jeff Fahey and George Dzundza carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "An adventure in obsession...".
8IMDB entry: tt0100928 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 11 themes, including "london, england", "based on novel or book", "elephant", "africa".

The technical file

Cinematography: Jack N. Green
Original score: Lennie Niehaus
Editing: Joel Cox
Production design: John Graysmark
Costume design: John Mollo
Makeup / hair: Colin Jamison
Sound: Les Fresholtz
Runtime: 112 min · 1h 52m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $24,000,000
Box office: $2,300,000
Return: 10% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: White Hunter, Black Heart (1990)
Rotten Tomatoes: 84% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 66/100
IMDB rating: 6.5/10 · 13,509 votes
MPAA: PG

Awards

2 nominations

Also by

Clint Eastwood

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

r96sk2022-02-05
★ 8/10
An interesting 1990 film, is <em>'White Hunter, Black Heart'</em>. The lead character of John Wilson, portrayed by Clint Eastwood, is an intriguing fellow and the story he stars in is all very watchable. Jeff Fahey is also very good alongside Eastwood, his character is very much the moral compass of the film. The support cast, which notably includes one Timothy Spall, are all solid. The look of the film is pleasant, with some lovely visuals of the locations used, and it is paced nicely. There is also a cracker of a last line. I didn't love this film and don't think it's perfect, but that's not to take away from the fact that I found it be a really enjoyable watch.

Production companies