Noted as much for the woebegone fate of its three stars as for the stellar pairing of its celebrated screenwriter (playwright Arthur Miller) and prominent director, The Misfits remains a landmark work of the American cinema. The story had emerged from Miller's brief stay in rural Nevada while awaiting a divorce and his encounter there with a small band of cowboys who survived by rounding up wild horses. He expanded this narrative by introducing a woman into this male community-a role he imagined for his new bride, Monroe-and then collaborated with Huston on a screenplay. The resulting film inventively mixes aspects of classic cinema (particularly by way of studio veteran Russell Metty's stunning cinematography) with an equivalent demystification of the American dream of the West.