The Last Wagon (1956)

Director:

Delmer Daves

Writers:

James Edward Grant (screenplay) and
Delmer Daves (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

21 September 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Western

Tagline:

ROMANTIC WESTERN ADVENTURE! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

When a handful of settlers survive an Apache attack on their wagon train they must put their lives into the hands of Comanche Todd...

Plot Keywords:

Attack | Wagon Train | Revenge | Capture | Children

Cast

Richard Widmark	...	Comanche Todd
Felicia Farr	...	Jenny
Susan Kohner	...	Jolie Normand
Tommy Rettig	...	Billy
Stephanie Griffin	...	Valinda Normand
Ray Stricklyn	...	Clint
Nick Adams	...	Ridge
Carl Benton Reid	...	Gen. Howard
Douglas Kennedy	...	Col. Normand
George Mathews	...	Sheriff Bull Harper
James Drury	...	Lt. Kelly
Ken Clark	...	Sergeant

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (as De Luxe)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 | USA:Approved (certificate #18072) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Oak Creek Canyon, Sedona, Arizona, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Average Shot Length = ~6.7 seconds. Median Shot Length = ~6.1 seconds. Both values are fast for a reasonably early CinemaScope film.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Just before The End title comes up you can see the shadow of the camera crew as Todd rides off.

Quotes:

[after capturing Todd, Sheriff Harper offers to join Colonel Normand's wagon train]
Col. Normand: He's safe in your custody, I suppose. It's just that we got women and children with us.
Sheriff Bull Harper: He'll be safe. The first time he don't look safe, he'll get dead.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Hollywood Screen Tests: Take 2 (1999) (TV)

Pretty good movie until the end

Widmark plays the anti-hero who comes to the aid of teenagers who survived an Indian attack. As usual widmark is great and i esp loved the hateful sheriff played by george matthews who is gonna turn criminal widmark in for the reward . He treats widdy just awful and eventually widmark cleaves him open with a hatchet!!! You don't get to see the hatchet land, but it's still a great scene cause the slimeball had it comin'. Three teenage girls in the film are very attractive and the scenery is spectacular. I won't tell the ending of course, but lets just say it's pretty sappy and didn't jibe with the rest of the movie which was quite cynical. All in all, surprisingly good for a 50 year old western. I'll give it a B+.