If you want to watch a rebel gloriously going up in flames, you have to watch Paul Newman as 'Hud'. His character embodies the same restless, angry almost animal like quality that his seminal characters in 'Cat on a hot tin roof' and 'Hustler' do.
The frustrated son of an old rancher, Hud Bannon is fighting not only his father, but also the demons in his own mind owing to the accident that killed his older brother when he was driving them both home after a long night of drinking. He feels totally unloved and unwanted and shows his anger with violent drinking sessions, fierce arguments with his father and an amorous appetite for women whom he uses and discards at will.
When his father's herd is affected with foot and mouth disease, Hud stakes claim to the property and demands that his father dispose off the land and pay him his dues. Also in the picture are his late brother's now adult son who gingerly looks up to Hud as a role model and a caretaker who finds Hud strangely attractive. The film explores the psychology of a rebel who finds himself exceedingly alone as he pushes away the people closest to him in his quest for perceived fairness in life.
The plot of 'Hud' is fairly simple, but is rich in characterization and dialogue. Each of the principal characters, the father, son, grandson and caretaker have distinct personalities. Each has something taken away from them by life and are smarting under it, while looking for better times. The screenplay is adapted from the novel 'Horseman, Pass By' by Larry McMurtry. Director Martin Ritt paces the movie slowly, allowing time for the viewer to understand the nuances of each character, but the vast landscape across which the movie is set would have been better served with color. The B&W however brings the focus on the characters and blurs out the background, which serves the movie better overall.
Paul Newman is outstanding as 'Hud'. He brings brutish strength and child-like vulnerability to the character; two aspects of any rebel that would make them lovable. Patricia Neal as the observant caretaker manages to match Newman's stature with her own brand of quiet strength and was rewarded with an Oscar for best actress for her role. Melvyn Douglas as old man Bannon, a bitter, yet principled patriarch lends a dignity to a role that would otherwise have become the usual stubborn geriatric. He won the Oscar for best supporting actor.
'Hud' is an excellent psychological profile of a lovable rebel; a man whom anyone would love to guide home and a man who unfortunately but predictably finds himself alone.