I Will Fight No More Forever (TV 1975)

In a period when many thought that "the only good Indian is a dead Indian," Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce won the admiration of the American Public.

Director:

Richard T. Heffron

Writers:

Jeb Rosebrook, Theodore Strauss

Stars:

James Whitmore, Sam Elliott, Ned Romero

Nominated for 2 Primetime Emmys.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Whitmore	...	General Oliver O. Howard
Sam Elliott	...	Captain Wood
Ned Romero	...	Chief Joseph
Linda Redfearn	...	Toma
Emilio Delgado	...	Ollokot
John Kauffman	...	Wahlitits
Nick Ramus	...	Rainbow
Frank Salsedo	...	White Bird
Vince St. Cyr	...	Chief Looking Glass (as W. Vincent St. Cyr)
Charles Ynfante	...	Yellow Wolf

Storyline

Re-enactment of the story of Chief Joseph of the Nez Percé Indians, who lived in the beautiful Wallowa Valley of Idaho and Oregon. In 1877, President Grant opened the Valley to white settlement, and the Nez Percé were given 30 days in which to move to the Lapwai Reservation. The government sent the one-armed soldier-chief, General Oliver Otis Howard, to clear all Nez Percé out of Wallowa Valley. Chief Joseph, in a succession of shrewd military actions, outmaneuvered ten pursuing units of the U.S. Army until his outnumbered band -- sick, starving, and tired -- finally surrendered after a 1700-mile, 108-day fighting retreat. On October 8, 1877, Chief Joseph made his noble speech, "from where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever."

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Plot Keywords:

government | starving | 1870s | native american chief | america | 

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Genres:

Action | Drama | History | War | Western

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 April 1975 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Luta Pela Liberdade

Company Credits

Production Co:

David Wolper Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Captain Wood: General, would you permit a word of advice? Tell them all to go to hell!

User Reviews

Historical movie recounting the legendary Ned Percé trek led by the mythic Chief Joseph

The picture is an epic portrait of the historic story about celebrated Chief Joseph (Ned Romero) and his legendary feat leading the Ned Perce tribe on a trek to Canada . Meanwhile , he squares off US cavalry commanded by General Howard (James Withmore and attended by his captain played by Sam Eliott) who leads his army on a wild chase across the plains and mountains in this saga of the old west . Joseph refuses to surrender in this chronicle of a bitter fight between the Ned Perce tribe and the US cavalry in the struggle for the west . The film displays action Western , shootouts , drama and spectacular battles . It's a thoughtful piece for its time that had an original tragic ending . The motion picture was brilliantly directed by Richard T. Heffron . This powerful TV movie will appeal to Indian Western fans.

The movie was correctly based on real events . Thus , Chief Joseph (1832-1904) became a skilled military leader ,he won 18 battles in the 1877 war,then led the retreat to Canada,before surrendering. The reality happened when Ned Percé ceded a large part of their territory to the U.S. by treaty and settled on lands in Oregon and Idaho.Joseph's people occupied the ancestral lands of the fertile Wallowa Valley in Oregon.When gold was discovered in Nez Percé county,government agents proposed a new treaty which would remove Joseph's people from their Valley to a reservation in Idaho.He wanted no part of the treaty but in the summer of 1877 General Howard delivered an ultimatum that all must leave the Wallowa within thirty days or be forcibly removed by the cavalry.The Ned Percé tribe has always been friendly with the white men but when the situation developed into armed conflict between his warriors and the soldiers,he decided to fight.After defeating a column sent after them and bringing an angry Howard into the field with a big force, he decided refuge in Canada,as Sitting Bull had done after defeating Custer at the Little Big Horn(1876).So began the epic flight , a fighting march of 1300 miles across US,engaging separate commands of the Army all the way.On 5 October 1877 Joseph and his surviving people were surrounded by fresh troops about thirty miles from the Canadian border.The Indians were exhausted,starving and cold and Joseph surrendered to generals Howard and Miles,delivering his classic speech of the defeated Indian.The Ned Percé were sent to reservation in the Indian territory,now Oklahoma.In 1885 the great chief was sent to Colville reservation in Washington,where he died in 1904,still an exile from his beloved Wallowa Valley.