Sergeant Rutledge (1960)

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

James Warner Bellah (written by) and
Willis Goldbeck (written by)
(more)

Release Date:

18 May 1960 (USA)

Genre:

Western | Crime

Tagline:

It's the rendezvous with DEATH for men to whom DEATH was no stranger!

Plot:

Respected black cavalry Sergeant Brax Rutledge stands court-martial for raping and killing a white woman and murdering her father, his superior officer.

Plot Keywords:

Sergeant | Cavalry | Murder | Court Martial | Soldier

Cast

Jeffrey Hunter	...	Lt. Tom Cantrell (counsel for the defense)
Constance Towers	...	Mary Beecher
Billie Burke	...	Mrs. Cordelia Fosgate
Woody Strode	...	1st Sgt. Braxton Rutledge
Juano Hernandez	...	Sgt. Matthew Luke Skidmore
Willis Bouchey	...	Col. Otis Fosgate - president of the court-martial
Carleton Young	...	Capt. Shattuck - prosecutor
Judson Pratt	...	Lt. Mulqueen (court-martial board member)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Shug Fisher	...	Mr. Owens (uncredited)
Sam Harris	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Chuck Hayward	...	Capt. Dickinson (uncredited)
William Henry	...	Capt. Dwyer (uncredited)
Rafer Johnson	...	Cpl. Krump (uncredited)
Jack Kenny	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Mike Lally	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Jack Lewis	...	Indian (uncredited)
Fred Libby	...	Chandler Hubble (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons	...	Sam Beecher (uncredited)
Mae Marsh	...	Mrs. Nellie Hackett (uncredited)
Toby Michaels	...	Lucy Dabney (uncredited)
Jack Mower	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Eva Novak	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Jack Pennick	...	Courtroom Sergeant (uncredited)
Jack Perrin	...	Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
Walter Reed	...	Capt. McAfee (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	...	Court-Martial Board Member (uncredited)
Charles Seel	...	Dr. Walter Eckner (uncredited)
Ed Shaw	...	Chris Hubble (uncredited)
Hank Worden	...	Laredo (uncredited)

Directed by
John Ford

Writing credits
James Warner Bellah		(written by) and
Willis Goldbeck		(written by)
James Warner Bellah		(novel) uncredited

Produced by
Patrick Ford	....	producer
Willis Goldbeck	....	producer

Original Music by
Howard Jackson

Cinematography by
Bert Glennon		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Jack Murray

Art Direction by
Eddie Imazu

Set Decoration by
Frank M. Miller

Costume Design by
Marjorie Best

Makeup Department
Gordon Bau	....	makeup supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Russell Saunders	....	assistant director (as Russ Saunders)
Wingate Smith	....	assistant director

Sound Department
M.A. Merrick	....	sound

Stunts
Chuck Hayward	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack Lewis	....	stunts (uncredited)
Cliff Lyons	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Roberson	....	stunts (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Michael A. Hoey	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Other crew
Dolores Rubin	....	script supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros (presents)
• Ford Productions (as John Ford's Production of)

Distributors

• Warner Bros (1960) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (1994) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Bros. (1961) (West Germany) (theatrical)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Spain:13 | UK:PG (video rating) (1998) | West Germany:12 (nf) | USA:Approved (certificate #19413) | Canada:PG (video rating) | UK:A (original rating) (passed with cuts) | UK:PG (tv rating)

Filming Locations:

Mexican Hat, Utah, USA

Company:

Warner Bros

Trivia:

Unsatisfied with Woody Strode's rehearsal of bullet-wounded drowsiness, director John Ford took his own steps to make Strode appear authentically weary for Rutledge's gunshot early on in the film. The day before the scene was to be shot, Ford got Strode drunk early in the day and had an assistant follow him around for the rest of the day to make sure he stayed that way. When the time came for Strode to shoot the scene with Constance Towers, his hangover gave him the perfect (for Ford) appearance of a man who had been shot.

Goofs:

Plot holes: Cantrell explains that the "buffalo soldiers" were so named because when first seen by the Native Americans, the Natives mistook their woolly coats for those of a buffalo. In truth, it was the "nappy" hair of the Black soldiers that lead the Natives to dub the unit as "Buffalo Soldiers," but Cantrell could have been misinformed. When Dr. Eckner testifies as to the rape/murder, his testimony is shown in flashback and concludes with a conversation between Juano Hernandez as Skidmore and Jeffrey Hunter as Cantrell that took place outside the building. As the doctor remained inside, he could not possibly have heard it.

Quotes:

[Lucy jumps off her horse, ties it up on the rail, and enters the store where Mrs. Fosgate and Mrs. Hackett are]
Mrs. Cordelia Fosgate:Lucy Dabney! Riding astride! When will your father realize that you are a grown-up young lady?
Mrs. Nellie Hackett:Yes!
Lucy Dabney:[laughs] Papa says as long as I say my prayers and behave myself with the young lieutenants, he doesn't care if I ride like Lady Godiva!

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #2.21" (2011)

Soundtrack:

Captain Buffalo

A great underrated film

John Ford, ever the director of the under dog creates another masterpiece of forgotten American history.

Ford, who called himself a social democrat creates another film of nobility and personal convictions, both his and his characters. It is Fords great humanity and sense of justice which makes this film so appealing.

Some of the narrative is forced and the resolution is pat. What we do have is Fords beautiful colour camera in Monument Valley, ala "The Searchers ( 1956 )", broad humour, defined characterizations and attention to detail both individual and historical.

Jeffrey Hunter, always an underrated actor, is fine as the lead, but it is Woody Strode as the title character that is a stand out. His courtroom scene defending his beliefs and humanity is truly moving as is his scene as he rides back to save his troop. A " man mountain" he is ! Through his physical presence Ford coaxes out subtle nuances of character which give the role a ring of truth. Supporting him we have Fords usual wonderful stock players. Although not as poetic or thought out as some of Fords other films this is still miles ahead of other peoples efforts.