Many of the 1950s Westerns – the height of the genre – were filmed in spectacular Technicolor that brings out marvelous scenery. They are so beautiful, and Universal Studios really displayed superior photography with "Tomahawk." The movie's opening shows a peace conference between the US cavalry and the Sioux in 1866. The conference ends inconclusively as the US peace commission bargains in bad faith. The Indians want the Bozeman Trail (from Wyoming to Montana) and its trail fortresses closed; the army wants them to remain open. Jim Bridger says the alternate trail (Bridger Trail) to the Montana gold strike takes only two days longer, but to no avail. Thus we have the plot: another conflict between the red man and the white.
The movie can generally be highlighted by quick bullet points that are historically accurate.
Laramie Peace Conference of 1866 Sand Creek Massacre of Colonel Chivington (who disregarded Black Kettle's flying of the American flag, mentioned but not seen in the film, 1864) Encroachment on Indian Territory, the Powder River country The mechanical grass-cutting machine that held up Carrington (mentioned, but not seen in the movie) Personal conflicts between Carrington and Fetterman. The Fetterman Massacre (1866) – American Indian victory (over the Lodge Trail Ridge) The Wagon Box Fight (1867) – US Cavalry victory (use of quick breech-loading rifles) The abandonment of the trail forts in 1868.
It is pleasant to see a movie with historical events fairly accurately portrayed, even though some errors creep in. For instance, Bridger's time was past before 1866, and Fetterman was a colonel, not a captain. The most glaring error is the film's unfortunate overseas title, "The Battle of Powder River." The historian will note that the Powder River fight occurred against the Cheyenne in 1876. The film's beginning is 1866, and ten years certainly did not pass in the course of the movie. So the overseas title is a misnomer. Then again, the Indians are played by natives (except for the Cheyenne Monahseetah by Susan Cabot), and are portrayed sympathetically: as people who really want to live in peace but who are faced with an impossible situation. At the same time, the Indians were not flawless. But they were tough fighters who were brought down by greater numbers, superior technology, and the elimination of the buffalo. In this movie, though, they come out as winners. And it is an historical fact that the US did yield the Bozeman Trail and its forts in 1868.
The casting is well done: Van Heflin plays famous scout Jim Bridger who liked Indians, while Jack Oakie is his sidekick Sol Beckworth. Susan Cabot plays the Indian girl, Monahseetah, who witnessed the Sand Creel Massacre, and Yvonne De Carlo is Julie Madden, part of Dan Castello's Medicine Show (Castello is Tom Tully). John War Eagle plays the famous Indian chief, Red Cloud. Alex Nicol is Lt. Rob Dancy, an Indian-hater who accompanied Chivington on his massacre, and Preston Foster is a sensible US Cavalry colonel who built Ft. Phil Kearney. Arthur Space plays a hot-headed Fetterman who led his men to total disaster, and Rock Hudson, in an early supporting role, is Corporal Hanna.
The movie can generally be highlighted by quick bullet points that are historically accurate.
Laramie Peace Conference of 1866 Sand Creek Massacre of Colonel Chivington (who disregarded Black Kettle's flying of the American flag, mentioned but not seen in the film, 1864) Encroachment on Indian Territory, the Powder River country The mechanical grass-cutting machine that held up Carrington (mentioned, but not seen in the movie) Personal conflicts between Carrington and Fetterman. The Fetterman Massacre (1866) – American Indian victory (over the Lodge Trail Ridge) The Wagon Box Fight (1867) – US Cavalry victory (use of quick breech-loading rifles) The abandonment of the trail forts in 1868.
It is pleasant to see a movie with historical events fairly accurately portrayed, even though some errors creep in. For instance, Bridger's time was past before 1866, and Fetterman was a colonel, not a captain. The most glaring error is the film's unfortunate overseas title, "The Battle of Powder River." The historian will note that the Powder River fight occurred against the Cheyenne in 1876. The film's beginning is 1866, and ten years certainly did not pass in the course of the movie. So the overseas title is a misnomer. Then again, the Indians are played by natives (except for the Cheyenne Monahseetah by Susan Cabot), and are portrayed sympathetically: as people who really want to live in peace but who are faced with an impossible situation. At the same time, the Indians were not flawless. But they were tough fighters who were brought down by greater numbers, superior technology, and the elimination of the buffalo. In this movie, though, they come out as winners. And it is an historical fact that the US did yield the Bozeman Trail and its forts in 1868.
The casting is well done: Van Heflin plays famous scout Jim Bridger who liked Indians, while Jack Oakie is his sidekick Sol Beckworth. Susan Cabot plays the Indian girl, Monahseetah, who witnessed the Sand Creel Massacre, and Yvonne De Carlo is Julie Madden, part of Dan Castello's Medicine Show (Castello is Tom Tully). John War Eagle plays the famous Indian chief, Red Cloud. Alex Nicol is Lt. Rob Dancy, an Indian-hater who accompanied Chivington on his massacre, and Preston Foster is a sensible US Cavalry colonel who built Ft. Phil Kearney. Arthur Space plays a hot-headed Fetterman who led his men to total disaster, and Rock Hudson, in an early supporting role, is Corporal Hanna.