Tomahawk Trail

A cavalry Sergeant pulls a "Caine Mutiny" and relieves an incompetant officer of command of a patrol in Apache territory. This otherwise routine oater is of interest mainly because it was an early vehicle for Conners. Look for a very young Harry Dean Stanton as the Lieutenant's Orderly.

A cavalry detachment must trek across desert badlands because their arrogantly incompetent lieutenant lets the Apaches get their horses. Led now by their sergeant, they eventually hole up in an abandoned fort, only to face another Apache onslaught.

Bel-Air was a budget movie outfit, while director Selander was a budget director. So why did this little programmer turn out as well as it did. No, the 60-minutes is nothing memorable, but still there's a good script, okay acting, and generally well-staged action. Add location shooting in Utah, without a single studio set, and I credit producer Howard W. Koch for the generally superior result. (Check his list of later credits that includes The Manchurian Candidate {1962}, and Airplane! {1980}, among others.)

Connors is excellent as the stalwart sergeant, commanding but without swagger. Of course, the girls are a slice of eye candy amidst all the men, but are woven pretty well into the plot. And catch those two near-rape scenes, cutting edge for the late 1950's. For a minute, I was afraid the philosophical exchange between the sergeant and Ellen (Cummings) might get heavy-handed. But wisely the scripter raises the pragmatic issue of war-- which is relevant to the cavalry's predicament—without letting it dominate an action movie.

Anyway, the parts are shrewdly assembled, not least of which is the towering Connors only a year away from becoming Lucas Mc Cain with a rifle. And, oh yes, the movie made me realize what a superior weapon the pistol, not the rifle, is for close-in fighting, unusual for the usually rifle-bound cavalry.

Sgt. Wade McCoy (Chuck Connors) with a ragtag group of soldiers opens with, "Nothing is ever routine along the Tomahawk Trail." Lt. Jonathan Davenport (George N. Neise) begs to differ as he contests the sergeant at every turn. This sets the stage for a most contentious and dangerous adventure in Apache territory. Pvt. Miller ( Harry Dean Stanton) takes the lieutenant's side while Pvt. Reynolds (John Smith) supports the sergeant. In a bloody skirmish, they find the daughter of a deceased captain (Susan Cummings) and the Chief's daughter (Lisa Montell). There's great interplay here between Connors and Neise as they jockey for position with the troops. They are fighting the Apaches, each other and protecting the captive women on many fronts. Tomahawk Trail is all drama and suspense from start to finish with some fine acting performances.

Led by an incompetent lieutenant, a force of soldiers are on the Tomahawk Trail in Apache Territory. When he lets the Indians steal their horses and is lightly wounded in a skirmish, Sergeant McCoy takes command. McCoy successfully takes them to the fort to find all the soldiers who have been murdered by the Apaches. He prepares the troops for an attack knowing if they want to outlive the lieutenant to bring him to justice.

A nice and brisk western, which has has enough drama, suspense, great scenery and well-staged action to keep you hooked throughout its 62 mins running time. The Apache comes across as human as well as wraith-like, slowly reducing the cavalry numbers, and that due to a moronic knucklehead of a lieutenant, but Chuck Connors, before he became the Rifleman, eventually takes command.

This is a hackneyed western with few faults. I found it more interesting than I expected. Chuck Connors plays a young Cavalry Sargent that must take over a unit led by an injured and temporarily demented Lieutenant. This action takes place in Apache territory...the boys in blue hope to find safety in a fort that has already been ravaged. Short, but action packed. Also in the cast are:John Smith, Robert Knapp, Susan Cummings and a young Harry Dean Stanton. Kind of feels like sitting in the Kiddie Matinee on Saturday morning.