| White Hunter Black Heart | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Clint Eastwood |
| Screenplay by | Peter Viertel James Bridges Burt Kennedy |
| Based on | White Hunter, Black Heart by Peter Viertel |
| Produced by | Clint Eastwood |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Jack N. Green |
| Edited by | Joel Cox |
| Music by | Lennie Niehaus |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 110 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $24 million[1] |
| Box office | $2 million[1] |
White Hunter Black Heart is a 1990 American adventure drama film produced, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood. It is based on the 1953 book of the same name written by Peter Viertel, who cowrote the screenplay with James Bridges and Burt Kennedy. The screenplay was the last that Bridges wrote before his death in 1993.
The film is a thinly disguised account of Viertel's experiences while working on the 1951 film The African Queen, which was filmed on location in Africa at a time when foreign location shoots for American films were rare. The main character, brash director John Wilson (played by Eastwood) is based on real-life director John Huston. Jeff Fahey plays Pete Verrill, a character based on Viertel. George Dzundza's character is based on African Queen producer Sam Spiegel. Marisa Berenson's character Kay Gibson and Richard Vanstone's character Phil Duncan are based on Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, respectively.
- ^ a b Hughes, Howard, Aim for the Heart: The Films of Clint Eastwood, p.147, I.B. Tauris, London, 2009, ISBN 978-1-84511-902-7.