Load of rubbish!!

For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

Boring

A Major Disappointment

In the old movies, when the Native Americans were depicted as savage Indians, they were a force to be reckoned with. They were part of what made the Old West a dangerous place, for they were always likely to attack a white settlement or wagon train, hoping to scalp the men and rape the women. This made for great cinematic entertainment. But then our conscience began to bother us, and so we started trying to make amends with movies depicting the Native Americans as victims, more to be pitied than feared. Though such revisionist Westerns may be more faithful to the facts of the Native-American experience, yet they just are not as much fun, and this movie is a good example of that.When the movie begins, we see the pathetic Cheyenne Indians, who are forced to live on a reservation in Oklahoma, suffering from neglect at the hands of white men. They weary of this and decide to leave Oklahoma and return to their ancestral home in Wyoming, with the army in pursuit. Now, if I had been chief of this tribe, I would have waited until spring, because such a trek would be easier to make in warm weather. But no, they leave just before winter is about to set in, which only adds to their misery.Anyway, things are moving along, and left at that, this could have simply been a boring two-hour movie. But you know John Ford. He always has to put some corny scenes in his movies. I think he calls it comic relief. So we have this pointless, painful segment about Dodge City, where Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday act silly. There is only a tenuous connection between this segment and what is happening to the Cheyenne, and if it had been left out, you would never have missed it. But it was not left out, and that means that instead of a boring two-hour movie, we end up with a boring and painful two- and-a-half hour movie.

Mari Sandoz' sympathetic account of the flight of the Northern Cheyennes from Oklahoma's Indian Territory to their historical homeland in Wyoming is the basis of John Ford's final western adventure. The usual emotional mistreatment of the Indians, with broken promises, lies, the disrespect shown to their chiefs, indifference to the tribe's well-being, lack of proper nourishment and education by their white custodians sets in motion their northward trek. The Cheyenne migration comes to the attention of the War Department in Washington with orders to stop the Indians and return them to their reservation. The film has several hit-and-run skirmishes, with the fighting prowess of the Cheyennes keeping the pursuing soldiers at bay. Richard Widmark, a cavalry officer and Carroll Baker, a Quaker who wants to educate the Cheyenne children, are sympathetic towards the Indians' plight, in stark contrast to Karl Malden's Russian martinet who imprisons the Indians at Fort Robinson and vows to send them back to the arid Oklahoma territory. The film's measured and deliberate pace is in keeping with the plodding progress of the tribe's move north. The Dodge City sequence, which features a comical poker game, is a pointless twenty minute detour from the film's narrative and adds nothing to the plot. The wide-screen cameras of William Clothier capture the beautiful scenery of Monument Valley, director Ford's favorite shooting location. Gilbert Roland, Ricardo Montalban and Dolores del Rio are excellent in various Cheyenne roles.

John Ford once again shows that not everything is black and white. And not every western (movie) was treating the Indians with disrespect or had trouble showing them as more than mere villains. That does not mean, that you will understand their actions or condone them. But at least you will get more background on how and why they did things. Every human has his dignity. Some cherish it more than others.While it tries to shine light on all sides and put everyone on the spot, you might feel that the human side does not get considered as much as it should. But you would be wrong to assume that. Of course it cannot give us a full explanation of everything going on (or why some people decide to do certain things), but it still is true to its goal. And while not perfect (tonally) it does achieve quite a few things

In the 1870s American West, the Cheyenne Indians of Wyoming are sent to an Oklahoma reservation. When the lands proves barren, and most of the tribe dies, the 286 remaining Cheyenne leave for their once happy hunting grounds. Calvary Captain Richard Widmark (as Thomas Archer) leads a regime sent to stop the Cheyenne. Accompanying the tribe is tightly-outfitted Quaker schoolteacher Carroll Baker (as Deborah Wright), who also happens to be Mr. Widmark's love interest. Naturally, Widmark wants to avoid casualties, but hot-blooded Sal Mineo (as Red Shirt) isn't going quietly...This was John Ford's last western, and his penultimate film. Reported to be in declining health, Mr. Ford's directorial skills are, happily, still sufficiently in evidence. Widmark (in a role that sounds like it was written for John Wayne) and a few of the cast do well. And, the cinematography, by William Clothier, was understandably nominated for an "Academy Award". BUT, "Cheyenne Autumn" moves at a laborious pace, and is ultimately done in by a bizarre interlude involving Jimmy Stewart (as Wyatt Earp) with Arthur Kennedy (as Doc Holliday); the film needed something, but this wasn't it.***** Cheyenne Autumn (10/3/64) John Ford ~ Richard Widmark, Carroll Baker, James Stewart, Sal Mineo