Indian Territory

I like all of Gene's movies.

But this one has a glaring historical error.

He sings "Chattanooga Shoeshine Boy" which was published in 1950.

Problem is, the setting of this movie is set sometime in the 1870's, 80 years before the song was written.

Oh well, a minor detail .

I suppose the writers paid little attention to accuracy when it came to Gene's singing and his tendency to interrupt the story line to entertain us with some music.

But as a former history teacher and historical buff, it is disconcerting to me to watch this play out in a movie as I try to enjoy it.

At any rate I will continue to enjoy Autry's westerns.

One challenge which these "singing cowboy" movies face is how the music fits in. In this case, I would say "tolerably." I also expect some comic relief, which Pat Buttram adequately provides here. Sorry, but James Griffith does not meet my expectation of an "old west" character. The storyline has Gene helping investigate Indian raids on a supply route. It's clarified that this is contrary to Indian conduct and that these renegades are led by a man who's half-white, working for a caucasian Austrian. Simultaneously, a cattleman and his daughter encounter difficulties settling in the area. When it comes to top-notch Autry movies, however, this is NOT an example.

I watched the movie Arizona from 1940, starring Jean Arthur and William Holden.

A scene in the movie had a cattle herd being stampeded by Indians. William Holden had the cowboys turn the herd against the Indians. Later, the cattle were herded through the town.

In the movie, Indian Territory 1950, the same scenario was used by Gene Autry, to turn the stampeding herd into the charging Indians. He, also, convinced the owner of the herd to drive the herd through town.

Because I saw the movies on back-to-back days, it became clear to me the scenes used were exactly the same in each movie. Even the scene, of the Indian camp, before the stampede, were the same.

Is it possible that Autry "stole" the scenes from Arizona and used the same footage in his movie, Indian Territory? I saw nothing in the credits of Indian Territory, referencing the use of clips from the movie, Arizona.

Gene produced this entry, while Columbia distributed. I mention this because the programmer includes stock footage from Columbia that I'm sure they made available to Gene. It wasn't uncommon for budget productions to use stock footage for expensive scenes, and I'm sure shrewd businessman Autry did it in an entirely legal manner.

Anyhow, the movie is a better-than-average entry, with some unusual touches— for example, a longer run-time (70-minutes); Gene loses out more than usual; he shares good guy chores with Kirby Grant; and no buffoonery from Buttram in an unusual straight role. The plot's a fairly standard one where Gene helps pacify hostile Apaches and stop gun-running from an ex-Austrian nobleman and his half-Apache hit-man. There're lots of flying fists, but not much hard-riding or fast-shooting. There's also lots of striking desert scenery, along with a really good sing-along "Chatanooga…". Gail Davis doesn't get much screen time, but makes the most of what she has. All in all, I thought the programmer was an entertaining effort, breaking some of the standard matinée conventions.

A "7" on the matinée scale.

Set during the Reconstruction Era, the story finds Autry working as an undercover agent for the U. S. cavalry. His mission: to neutralize a former Austrian army officer named Curt Raidler (Phil Van Zandt), who is leading a group of renegade Indians on a series of destructive raids.

There's a fair share of fistfights, galloping action and shootouts as well as the songs, which keeps things interesting amidst the lumbering pace and the mediocre execution. Gene Autry does what he does, croon and draw his guns, but James Griffith as Apache Kid steals the show. He was very underrated actor who is an expert in playing slippery characters.