La venganza de Ulzana

Robert Aldrich was a director I much admired, directing some of my favorite films: Kiss Me Deadly (1955) – the quintessential Mike Hammer flick – Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte (1964), The Flight of the Phoenix (1965), The Dirty Dozen (1967) and others. Now, after missing it for over thirty years, I can now add this one: as a truly realistic and accurate portrayal of what would have happened in one of many skirmishes during the Indian wars of the late nineteenth century.

This is a mature and sometimes grossly horrific account of what Apaches did to settlers and soldiers, and what soldiers did to Apaches. It pulls no punches in depicting how the marauding band of Apaches eviscerate the dead and play sport with the entrails of victims, how they rape and torture wives of settlers, how they torture the men slowly and most cruelly. But, it also shows how soldiers are driven to perform cowardly, and equally cruel acts when retaliating, in the name of justice.

And caught in the middle of this mayhem is young Lt. DeBruin (Bruce Davison) who's given the task of rounding up Ulzana (Joaquin Martinez) and his band of Apaches who left the reservation, stole some horses and began to lay a path of destruction and death across part of Arizona. Being fresh out from military college, he needs help; and so, the fort commander (Douglass Watson) sends the grizzled Army scout McIntosh (Burt Lancaster) along to provide necessary advice and guidance – together with a company of toughened army veterans kept in check by a weary sergeant (the ever competent Richard Jaeckel). Rounding out the 'posse' is the Apache army scout Ki-Ni-Tay (Jorge Luke) who provides the young DeBruin (and the viewer) with insight into the mind of the Apache.

The story resolves to a cat-and-mouse game between Ulzana and his pursuers, each trying to outguess and outmaneuver the other across and through the wide and desolate expanse of the Arizona hills and semi-desert. So, it's as much an entertainment as it is a lesson in the tactics necessary for the soldiers to gain the upper hand. There are some wonderful landscape shots that illustrate just how difficult the task was; and there are moments of sheer brilliance when Aldrich shows Ki-Ni-Tay's on-foot pursuit of one of Ulzana's band, a standout sequence of stealth and suspense.

Throughout all of this McIntosh brings his long experience to bear upon DeBruin's decisions, convincing the lieutenant to set the only trap that would fool Ulzana into making a mistake – McIntosh reiterating many times that "those who make the first mistake" will lose. All too true because things always go wrong with the best laid plans...

Once again, Lancaster shows the master's touch in this role: his crinkly eyes, lined face and quiet voice attesting to a man who's seen it all and who just wants to get a job done and survive another day. Which makes Davison almost perfect as the cherubic – almost angelic – faced neophyte who wants to do well but who also wants to change his world and make it better for all – including the Apache. Such irony...

The only jarring notes were the sometimes-quick cuts (which made me wonder if some scenes had been deleted); and the sometimes-peculiar music sound track that you have to listen to, to understand my point. Otherwise...

Not recommended for children as this film does contain some graphically awful scenes. For all adult fans of the western genre, however, I thoroughly recommend a viewing.

A small group of Apaches has just stolen some horses and left the reservation. Their number and immediate intentions are unclear to the commander of the nearest US Calvary outpost, but his youngest Lieutenant wishes to give them the benefit of the doubt according to his Christian philosophy.

The Calvary's scout is a grizzled, weather-beaten man played to perfection by Burt Lancaster. He knows exactly what the Apaches intentions are, and seems flabbergasted by the commander of the base for whom he serves. Nevertheless, he follows his orders all the while never missing a chance to foretell what will be the result of the Commander's delays.

The premise of this movie does follow the most cynical views that one people may hold for another, and there's no point in arguing their accuracy here. Different from many other films about Indian uprisings, at least this one attempts to explain the motives of the Apaches. To appreciate any film the premise must be "swallowed", but there are many who will not be able to keep it down long enough to enjoy the excellent writing, wonderful performances, and "not a frame viewed without purpose" editing and directing. I recommend this film completely and consider it an 8 out of 10, which I give to very few films.

Upon the first viewing this has become one of my favorite, if not my very favorite, western of all time. Not for the squeamish due to extreme violence to both people and animals.

Apache renegade Ulzana goes on a murder raid, hot on his trail is a posse of cavalrymen. Led by the young and inexperienced Lt. Garnett DeBuin, the cavalrymen in order to survive and defeat Ulzana, must rely on the help of tough old scout McIntosh and his trusty Indian friend, Ke-Ni-Tay.

Directed masterfully by Robert Aldrich ("The Dirty Dozen" & "The Longest Yard"), Ulzana's Raid is just shy of being an uncompromising masterpiece. There is no pandering to political correctness here, this is showing the bitter hostility of the Indian War, torture and murderous inclination is the order of the day. The allegories to Vietnam are hard to ignore as our band of men are struggling out in the wilderness against Ulzana's hostile raiders, the sprawling mountainous landscape another tool to the already handily equipped Apache.

What lifts Ulzana's Raid high above many of its contemporaries is the on the money dialogue. A wonderfully complex script from Alan Sharp manages to make all the characters intriguing and deserving of further delving. The Apache are savage, and Aldrich doesn't flinch from showing this, but they are afforded respect, and crucially, understanding. This could quite easily have been a one sided blood letting exercise in Western folklore, but it isn't. The motives and attitudes of the white man party is there for all to scrutinise, with much attention to detail given as the many conversations bring rich and rewarding results to the discerning viewer. From the off it's evident that McIntosh & DeBuin have vastly different views of Ulzana's actions, but as the film moves forward - all manner of questions leap out, be it Christian values, racial hatred or merely imperialistic trust, all parties involved are hurtling towards the final reckoning.

Burt Lancaster is perfect as McIntosh, grizzled and carrying a frame made for such a rigorous terrain. Playing DeBuin is Bruce Davison, boyish charm fused expertly with unwanted bravado, while stealing the film is Jorge Luke as Ke-Ni-Tay. A performance of great depth that holds and binds the picture brilliantly. Sadly this film has been a victim of much interference over the years, (studio and Lancaster himself to blame), so much so there is thought to be about 6 cuts of the film out there in the home entertainment world. Thankfully we are now able to get a cut of the film that is almost complete, but still there remains to this day no definitive full cut of the film. German (the version I own) and Australian releases proclaim to have it uncut, but that's not accurate because there is still some three minutes missing from the very first cut of it - including a quite crucial sequence involving Sergeant and Trooper Miller (note at 49 minutes an intrusive quick cut from a night scene to a day scene) Still, it has to be said that even with 3 minutes chopped out of it, Ulzana's Raid is still a grim and brilliant piece of work. Showing the savagery from both sides of the fence, Aldrich and his team refuse to cop out and pander to formula. 9/10

Stark and brutal, but completely lacking the melodramatic sturm und drang of most war movies, Ulzana's Raid plays out like it was another deadly day at the office for the participants. Produced as an allegory on the Vietnam War, Robert Aldrich and Burt Lancaster created a focused drama about the senselessness of hating your opponents and the absence of victory in ethnic conflicts. The participants and victimized settlers aren't so much dehumanized as they are inconsequential except to themselves.

Filmed in Nogales, Arizona and Nevada, the conflict is played out realistically with both sides shepherding their supplies of time, endurance, ammunition, and manpower. The location shots are beautifully laid out with an emphasis on depicting the strategic planning of the apache raiders and opposing troopers. Several scenes stand out in sharp contrast to most war movies. In one group of scenes, Aldrich follows a German family and their fate as the wife rides off with her child and a trooper escort, and the well-armed husband stays behind to defend their home. In another, the troop commander sends two soldiers after a wounded apache raider. In both cases, he turns conventional logic and sentiment on its head in honor of a grimmer reality. To my mind, this is one of the best war stories ever made and the DVD lays it out in full screen Technicolor.

Offbeat Western concerning about an aging scout named McIntosh (Burt Lancaster)and an idealist Cavalry Lt. (Bruce Davison)commanding a group of soldiers , booth of them join forces on their way to track down an Apache Chiricaua leader named Ulzana(Joaquin Martinez) escaped from reservation of San Carlos. The veteran along with an Apache scout (Jorge Luke) agree to help them to chase vicious Indians but learn that the rebel Apache chieftain is hunting them down.

This outlandish Western is based on mixture of modern violence and brooding dialog, is of real note. Lancaster plays perfectly a ready to retire veteran explorer trying to lead cavalry against marauding and cruel Indians. The last images when Lancaster-McIntosh stays below a cart being surrounded by brave Indians bear remarkable resemblance to frames regarding Gregory Peck from ¨Billy two hats¨ also by the same screenwriter Alan Sharp. Prestigious supporting cast as Lloyd Bochner as captain, Karl Swenson as tortured farmer and Richard Jaeckel as upright sergeant. Among some cavalry troopers appear secondaries as Jerry Gatlin, Richard Farnsworth and 'Nick Cravat' , Lancaster's usual partner. This gritty Western is ravishingly photographed in color by Joseph Biroc . Splendidly filmed on location in Nogales, Arizona and lands of : Coronado National Forest, Bureau of land of Management, State of Nevada, Department of Conservation and Resources, Division of the State Parks. It contains stirring musical score with Indian and military sounds by Frank DeVol , Aldrich's ordinary's musician. The talent for this vigorous Western that Aldrich shows is based on his powerful film-making that sustains interest and compels by careful concentration on the acting of Burt Lancaster. Robert Aldrich is a specialist on dramatic Western as ¨Veracruz¨, ¨Apache¨, ¨The last sunset¨ but also on Western with humor as ¨Four for Texas¨and ¨The Frisco kid¨. Rating : Very good, better than average and well worth seeing. This unusual Western enjoys recently elevated critical re-evaluation, though previously was considered as anti-Indian because they're brutally portrayed and being originally directed by Aldrich, a great expert in violent drama.