"Unforgiven" American mythology = Eastwood's Arrival stripped of Western drama trappings

The sheriff's character model embodies the theme of the movie.

Film critic Richard Schickel has testified that Little Bill's character development was influenced by the Rodney King scandal that occurred in 1991. When a black man named Rodney King was arrested for speeding, he was violently assaulted by several white police officers. This incident was accidentally filmed and reported along with the video, which triggered the Los Angeles riots of 1992. In America at the time this film was made, violence like the one in the film was a daily occurrence.

However, Little Bill is not a brutal man. He is usually a good-natured man, his stories are interesting, and he has a charm that attracts people. On his days off, he painstakingly builds his own house by himself, and he also has a gentle personality that loves nature.

Little Bill's dual nature seems to be a satire on Americans, or indeed on all humans. He's usually a nice guy and friendly. However, once it bares its fangs, it ruthlessly beats down its opponent with violence. This may have been the kind of humanity needed to maintain security and survive in a remote, uncivilized region like the American Midwest in the 19th century.

“Unforgiven” (c)2007 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All rights reserved.

However, his justice is consumed by the flames of violence, turns into sadism, and becomes distorted. It is symbolic that the house that Little Bill builds is somehow distorted and even leaks. His ideal of justice is as distorted as his home.

Even more interesting is the scene where Little Bill tells his biographer that most of the brave duels and romantic stories of the West are fabrications. He denies that dueling = murder is not as dramatic as in novels, but rather a humorous slapstick play, and at the same time talks about the difficulty of killing someone.

Little Bill overturns the image of a sheriff as an enforcer of justice, while also denouncing the falsification of the heroic legend that Western movies have perpetrated. He is a unique and important character that supports the theme of "Unforgiven".

Who are the “Unforgiven”?