The twists concerning army major Warner Anderson are infuriating, and it'll take some time for me to determine if it's a flaw in reality of the screenplay or inside the psyche that has made Anderson the way he is. But that does make for a fascinating ethical battle as his brutal charscter is absolutely vile and probably deserves a worse fate than he gets. It's touching that army scout Rory Calhoun has brotherly love for Cheyenne warrior Lee Van Cleef, and the giving of a family heirloom to Calhoun seals that bond. But this is a time of settlement in the old west, and there's going to be casualties, some shockingly brutal.
The script does give the Cheyenne motive for their brutality, and it comes from white man brutality that led to their revenge. The battle scene is lengthy and horrifying, insinuating more blood than is shown, making me wonder how this looked in the long missing color print. Peggie Castle as Calhoun's love interest and Noah Beery, Jr. Are good in support, but they are overshadowed by Calhoun, Van Cleef and Anderson, with the tension building up to a shocking finale where the unexpected does happen. Like it or not, I found it quite real and thus somewhat sad.
The script does give the Cheyenne motive for their brutality, and it comes from white man brutality that led to their revenge. The battle scene is lengthy and horrifying, insinuating more blood than is shown, making me wonder how this looked in the long missing color print. Peggie Castle as Calhoun's love interest and Noah Beery, Jr. Are good in support, but they are overshadowed by Calhoun, Van Cleef and Anderson, with the tension building up to a shocking finale where the unexpected does happen. Like it or not, I found it quite real and thus somewhat sad.