Armadilha

This is pretty standard cavalry outpost versus the Apaches fare, but it's well acted and directed, moves along at a good clip and boasts an intelligent script that develops its stock characters effectively. Robert Taylor is at his best in this kind of stalwart but human role. And the rest of the cast delivers strongly. (Arlene Dahl has great chemistry with both Taylor and John Hodiak, rivals for her affections.)

This was director Sam Wood's last film. The many action scenes are well staged and exciting, although color would have enhanced them. This is an example of big-budget Hollywood westerns from the late 40's and early 50's (many better known than this, e.g., "Red River) which--for some reason--were filmed in black and white.

For those who may have wondered what "Fort Apache" and, to a lesser extent, "The Searchers" might have looked like had they been directed by someone with roughly half the talent of John Ford, you now have your answer. In other words, "Ambush" is a too slow paced western with occasional flashes of interest that you cease to think about almost as soon as it is done. Its good points can be rather quickly summarized: sardonically intelligent dialogue by Marguerite Roberts, one of the better western scribes and one of the only women doing it, well executed battle scenes from director Sam Wood, whose last film this is (guy had a fatal coronary less than a year later, obviously worn out by decades of red baiting and commie hunting), and a good, hard bitten, low key performance from Rat Fink Bob. Its flaws, centered around an under developed love triangle between Taylor, Arlene Dahl and John Hodiak, as well as the standard racist depiction of Apaches, are too many to mention, although I feel I must single out the really dull sub plot involving a lieutenant played by Don Taylor, one of late 40s Hollywood's duller young actors, and an enlisted man's wife, played by the usually good, but not here, Jean Hagen. Oh and the cinematography is so dark that you feel you're watching an exercise in how not to shoot western noir. C plus.

Ambush was the second western Robert Taylor made in his career. The first was Billy the Kid eight years earlier. At the time a critic said that Robert Taylor looked like a kid in his new cowboy suit as Billy. Truth be told that was in Taylor's heartthrob days and he did look somewhat callow in the part.

No one would ever say that about Ambush. When we first meet Taylor he's with sidekick scout John McIntire with several days growth, dirty and unkempt, and on the dodge from Apaches. Of course he and McIntire escape and return to the fort they're assigned to and find a new spit and polish second in command in John Hodiak.

Even after a shave and a bath Taylor looks gritty and tough and starts to get interested in Arlene Dahl who is the daughter of a general and who's getting the army to go after her sister who's been captured by the same band of Apaches that Taylor just escaped from. Even though he knows it will cost lives Taylor scouts for the mission. He also wants to tweak Hodiak a bit who also is interested in Dahl.

There's another romantic triangle going at the post. Young lieutenant Don Taylor is interested in Jean Hagen the post laundress who's married to a wife beating enlisted man, Bruce Cowling.

This was the last film of director Sam Wood who possibly because of his right wing political views is not as well remembered today as a lot of his contemporaries. He received three nominations for Best Director for Kitty Foyle, Goodbye Mr. Chips, and King's Row. He did such other classics as Pride of the Yankees, A Day At the Races, A Night at the Opera and Our Town. That's a pretty good resume.

This maybe a cavalry picture, but it's not like one that John Ford would have directed. It's got some lean and mean characters and I don't mean just the standard villains. Ford would never have had anything as frank as out and out adultery in one of his films.

Ambush is a great western for fans of the genre and others. And after this no one was going to give Robert Taylor a review like the one he got for Billy the Kid.

Ambush is a gripping, authentic, action-packed, dramatically compelling picture of the United States Cavalry in the 1870's Arizona territory. It was producer/director Sam Wood's final movie, filmed shortly before his sudden death in September 1949 and released in January 1950. For top star Robert Taylor, now in his early forties, weathered but gracefully aged, it was an auspicious beginning to what would be a close association with the Western genre for the rest of his career.

While there is plenty of action in Ambush, its intense, nuanced character studies are what sets this dynamic Western apart from the crowd. Taylor plays a tough, savvy civilian scout at odds with by the book Army captain John Hodiack, both over campaign strategy and the affections of gorgeous Arlene Dahl, a late general's daughter hoping the cavalry can rescue her sister from Apache captivity. As if one love triangle were not enough for a dusty, little Army post, the first lieutenant Don Taylor is madly and hopelessly in love with the beautiful Irish laundress (Jean Hagen), the loyal Catholic wife to a drunken lout of an enlisted man (Bruce Cowling), who frequently socks her around. When a disabling injury to the major in command of the post (Leon Ames) puts the spit-and-polish captain temporarily in charge, everything comes to a boil. Not as soapy as it sounds but sensitively directed by Wood and perfectly acted by all concerned. The scenes of poignant longing tinged with guilt between Don Taylor and Ms. Hagen nearly steal the show. The rich supporting cast includes, as well as Ames and Cowling, John McIntire as an older scout, Pat Moriarity as the top sergeant, and also Charles Stevens, who claimed descent from Geronimo, as the vicious, resourceful Apache leader Diablito.

The script by Marguerite Roberts from a Luke Short story is intelligent and engaging with clever, brisk, colorful dialog. Harold Lipstein's moody black and white cinematography and Rudolph G. Kopp's textured score enhance the gritty, realistic, yet slightly nostalgic ambiance. Editing is silky smooth, as in almost any big studio picture of this era. The all important pacing is perfect. The compact 89-minute running time moves along at a brisk pace, building suspense, never dragging, but taking enough breathers to build character and create atmosphere. Costumes and sets are first-rate and authentic. Real-life western Army forts during the Indian War era did not have palisade walls, and, refreshingly, neither does the one in this handsomely turned out Western. More importantly, the characters act like nineteenth century people, with the social attitudes of the time, yet without seeming stiff.

With apologies to John Ford fans, which includes yours truly, Ambush is the best of its type. Whereas Ford, who liked to portray everything bigger than life, tended to make the cavalry too grand and romantic, Wood gives us the real Old West Army -- long-service soldiers serving loyally but thanklessly at dusty, out of the way posts neither finding nor expecting much in the way of comfort or glory.

Ambush is a thrilling, dramatic, atmospheric, authentic adult Western, engaging, charming, and entertaining from beginning to end. The opening and closing scenes of this picture are both real knockouts! This is an unappreciated classic. Top-notch entertainment from Old Hollywood's Golden Era.

When the apache indians kidnap the daughter of a military man, a party goes out to bring her back. If they can. The native american tribal leader diablito is known to be violent, and running out of places to go. It won't be easy. Stars robert taylor and john hodiak, with their own issues to be worked out. Of course. Gotta have that subplot. Beautiful locations of the west. Lupton is right on the border with new mexico. And "corriganville movie ranch" is now a los angeles park. Check out the interesting history in wikipedia dot org....it was owned by a hollywood stunt man, and later by comedian bob hope. Victor thunderclound is here as tana, an apache. Thundercloud may or may not actually have been native american, according to wikipedia. He was also tonto in "the lone ranger"! In the film, the group catches up to diablito about an hour into the film... the first part is all setup. Then the big confrontation. Which is over pretty quickly. It's okay, but i can see why it didn't win any oscars. Directed by sam wood. Based on a story by luke short. Many of his works were made into film.