La cavalcata della vendetta

A sheriff battles his gold hungry town and a cavalry captain who covet gold-rich Indian land.

The movie's pretty unremarkable except for the cowardly cavalry captain (Bridges). Cavalry officers were generally not portrayed in such a negative light. But here Bridges tries hard, if not very persuasively, to be as craven as possible. The film came along at a time when Hollywood was beginning to recognize the Indians' side of the struggle over land. Thus their side gets a fairer treatment than had been usual.

Calhoun plays an Indian sympathizer who tries to control the more bloodthirsty whites in the town. And, of course, he has an eye for the comely Indian maiden (Gilbert), who happens to look a lot whiter than he does. But then Hollywood never cast real Indian women as major romantic interests, even though they might use real Native Americans in all the other parts.

I'm not sure why cult actress Grahame is in the film since her part appears inessential. I guess it was for marquee value, though her best years are clearly past. On the whole, it's a rather dull western, without the expected big shootouts, but with a lot of talk instead. Its heart is in the right place, but not much else, I'm sorry to say.

One more western where Indians are not necessarily the bad guys, the evil savages. Sensitive, delightful to watch if you do it closely enough, characters for whom you have feelings that you don't always have for westerns in general. The characters are very important and the story telling is smartly done in that purpose, emphasizing the relationships between those same characters. It is not tough, rough, brutal, nothing of that but instead a nearly pro indian western. The director Bernard Girard mostly worked for TV and rarely for the big screen. Only the ending is a bit smooth, predictable. I think it could have been better.

Ride Out For Revenge is a sincere portrayal of the anguish of the American Indians, the Cheyennes specifically, in the aftermath of losing the Indian Wars. It also shows the bitter prejudice of the white settlers who have also suffered losses as a result of the wars.

The problem I find with this film is the rather unbelievably noble portrayal of Rory Calhoun in the lead. Not his fault, there's not much he can do with a character that's just too good. As is explained he's sustained personal losses himself, a sister and husband killed and he's raising his nephew Michael Winkelman and boarding with widow Gloria Grahame. As fetching as she ever was in movies, Grahame's got a real thing for Calhoun and he may have given her a tumble once or twice, but right now Rory has got eyes for Indian maid Joanne Gilbert.

I'm also not sure why a troop of cavalry is stationed in the town where Calhoun is marshal. But they're there and headed by Lloyd Bridges a captain who never would have found his way into any John Ford cavalry film. He's as slimy as they come. When chief Frank DeKova comes into town to plead for supplies for his people, he gets shot down in the street like a dog and son Vincent Edwards vows vengeance. That sets in motion all the events of the film that follows.

With characters I just could not buy, Ride Out For Revenge falls short of its goal for sympathy for the Cheyenne. One of the main characters dies and one is thought to have died in the end. The actual death of the first should have set off a big inquiry.

Kirk Douglas's Bryna Productions produced this one and Kirk was wise not to take the lead himself here.

Ride Out for Revenge is directed by Bernard Girard and written by Norman Retchin. It stars Rory Calhoun, Gloria Grahame, Lloyd Bridges, Joanne Gilbert, Frank DeKova and Vince Edwards. Music is by Leith Stevens and cinematography by Floyd Crosby.

A black and white Civil Rights Oater, Ride Out for Revenge has good intentions and no little amount of dramatic worth. Not everything works, as it's certainly portrayed in simplistic terms, but the anti-racist core of the story is worthy of viewing investment.

We are in the town of Sand Creek and the inhabitants are all bitter victims to the Indian Wars. One man stands alone in Sand Creek, Tate (Calhoun), a one time superlative Indian Fighter who now finds himself in love with a Cheyenne woman and firmly of the liberal mind that war has no favourite side: Misery is equal regardless of race, creed and colour. But can Tate avert an impending massacre that is brewing because of bile strewn hatred? Sand Creek is the base for Capt. George (Bridges), a cowardly drunkard who just wants the Cheyenne out of the Black Hills and down to some army governed reservation. But when cold blooded murder rears its ugly head, and tragedy strikes on both sides of the fence, Sand Creek approaches its day of reckoning.

The Wages of Sin, eh Captain?

There's no great production value on offer but the film still looks splendid thanks to Crosby's (High Noon) photography. Thematically it's a formula that even by 1957 was hardly original, but the under valued Calhoun oozes enough stoic machismo and emotional conflict to really engage those interested in the Civil Rights side of this period in history. Though the fact that he is lusted after by the twin beauties that are Gloria Grahame and Joanne Gilbert marks him out as one lucky dude!

Maybe you's like to know what a savage girl does when her savage father's murdered? She cries. She cries just as hard as you did when John was killed.

Is it preachy? No, it isn't. It's a viable narrative doing the best it can on a "B" budget. It should be noted that it very much beats the drum for both sides, it makes sure we know that all parties are scarred by the horrors of this distasteful war. OK! So it wont give the superior Devil's Doorway a run for its money, or even be fit enough to tie the boots of Broken Arrow, but it shouldn't be readily dismissed as weak "B" movie fodder. Besides, it has enough character interest and an extended knife fight by the river to make it at the very least a time waster for the Western faithful. 6.5/10

The story plays off of the hatred of Native Americans, and although there is a thread of support for equality and fairness, there's enough race-baiting stereotypes here to satisfy all spectrum of viewers. Gloria Grahame delivers a mannered, poor performance as a spurned love interest. The material is weak; her character goes from hating Indians (they killed her husband) to delivering a sanctimonious speech about hatred toward the end. Lloyd Bridges is over the top, easy to loathe. His character is a weasel. We get to see Vince Edwards, the future Dr. Ben Casey, as an indian. The best performance here is from Rory Calhoun, whose character has a strong moral compass; his performance is good leading man material. He's cool, relaxed and steady. Calhoun is the only reason to enjoy the film. Overall, not much new ground covered in this film. Nothing special.