Waste of time

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

This is very much a Western, except that it takes place in the Everglades. This time they aren't Sioux or Navajo, but Seminoles. But make no mistake...this is pretty much a Hollywood Western. Which is okay...and I still give it some bonus points for taking place during the Seminole Wars...something not covered very much in American cinema.We don't really learn much about Chief Osceola and the Seminole Indian Wars. But what we do see is the personal battle between a commanding officer (Richard Carlson) and his lieutenant (Rock Hudson). And we see the beauty of the Everglades (and yes, much of the film was actually shot in the Everglades), and in stunning color. Anthony Quinn is here as Osceola, but it's not a particularly good role for Quinn. I don't know enough about the real history of this time period in Florida, but I'm sure the film is ridiculously un-historic. Certainly the way they present Osceola dying is totally incorrect. And, while there appear to be Seminole Indians in the cast, all the speaking parts of Seminole Indians are actually white actors with heavy makeup (such as Hugh O'Brian...who is laughable).So, taken with a grain...or maybe a cartload...of salt, it's a good enough Western, and Rock Hudson does nicely here. I'm undecided about Richard Carlson's acting here. It is good to see Barbara Hale in the lead female role; she was a better actress than usually credited. And, they managed to wring out a somewhat happy ending in what was in reality a sad affair.

To Major Degan(Richard Carlson), commander of Fort King, in Florida's Seminole-dominated region, the only good Indian is a dead Indian. The historic Fort King was located in north central Florida, in the present city of Oscola. However, the events of this film are pictured as taking place in the Everglades, well to the south, south of Lake Okeechobee. This story is said to have taken place in 1835, when the 2nd Seminole War began, lasting until 1842. This war was instigated by increased demands of white settlers for new land, and the refusal of most Seminoles to honor the Treaty of Payne's Landing, which required them to move to Oklahoma within 3 years. Many chiefs said they were not present to consider the treaty or said they were forced to sign it. During this war, frequent raids on settlers and Indian villages were perpetrated. The official policy of the army was to kill any Indians who resisted capture to be resettled. However, it's clear by his actions and words that Major Degan preferred killing to capturing Indians. During the one campaign we witness, he has his men bayonet what looked like sleeping Indians rolled up in a blanket. They were filled with grass, as the Indians had been following the troop's movements in their "surprise" attack. Instead, the Indians sprang a surprise attack on the troops. The nearby chief called Osceola was renowned for his elusiveness. The capture of Osceola(Anthony Quinn)was Degan's prime objective at present. He had failed to capture him by an armed invasion, hence he decided to try treachery, inviting him to come under a flag of truce to discuss things. Osceola was immediately beaten, and put in 'the pit': a hole in the ground into which rainwater collected. Osceola died there, apparently of a combination of being stabbed and drowning. The chief who stabbed him said he violated the trust of his people, hence deserved to die.. The real Osceola was captured thus, but died in a prison in South Carolina some months later.Throughout the film, Major Degan's main nemesis within the fort was young Lt. Caldwell(Rock Hudson), who had much experience with the Seminoles and knew their language. He didn't favor relocating them in Oklahoma, and went by a conservative policy in killing them. Degan got irate with Caldwell periodically, and threatened him with court martial for insubordination. Barbara Hale plays Revere, who had a romance going with both Caldwell and Osceola. The latter looked the more real. But, Revere's main role is as a go-between Osceola and Degan.The film begins and nearly ends with Caldwell's court martial. The ending is a surprise, although it's hard to imagine this being realistic.Lee Marvin plays Sergeant Magruder, who occasionally shows up, usually being assigned under Lt. Caldwell...An unrecognizable Hugh O'Brien plays the chief Kajeck, who stabs Osceola. Probably, the most interesting part for me is the trek through the (real) Everglades by the army, with the changing nature of the mostly difficult terrain. It took quite a few men to push and pull a wagon containing a cannon. In one spot, it sank into a deep hole. Degan chewed out Caldwell for choosing to save the injured man laying on top of the cannon rather than the cannon.This is a fairly interesting film that illustrates the common problem of subordinate officers not agreeing with a policy of the commanding officer, and hoping to get their point across.This film came out just 2 year after "Distant Drums", staring Gary Cooper, again about problems with the Seminoles in the 2nd Seminole War. Difficult trekking in the Everglades is also featured. It deals more with stopping gun runners. I would rate the present film above that one, although most of the Seminoles look much more authentic.This film is available on a cheap DVD in an 8 pack of westerns, even though technically, it's a 'southern'

One thing that can be said without fear of contradiction in this fictionalized but surprisingly balanced story of the Seminole Wars in Florida, is that Richard Carlson as the stern and punctilious Commander of Fort King has never given a more energetic performance.He's hardly recognizable as the thoughtful amateur astronomer of "It Came From Outer Space." His voice seems to have soared to a new octave. He paces back and forth, spitting out his plosives, explaining to the newly arrived Lieutenant Rock Hudson that the Seminoles, previously peaceful, refuse to be relocated to Oklahoma like any reasonable tribe. Instead they've become a "renegade band" under the leadership of Anthony Quinn as Osceola, a real historical figure.Hudson looks a little ridiculous in the Army uniform of 1835 -- that toy soldier hat, those fringe-dripping golden epaulets -- just as all the other soldiers do, just as our soldiers will look to the people of 2135. This is an early performance and it's earnest and artless.Let me anticipate a post-script. First, the Seminole weren't the original inhabitants of the Everglades. They replaced a less sophisticated society called the Calusa, now represented only by buried artifacts and momentous mounds of sea shells. Second, the Seminole are still there and still live in huts called chickees. The Seminole didn't hold with slavery and they were joined by many runaways, which didn't endear the Seminoles to their white neighbors. Now they seem to survive through tourism and by keeping out of the way. When an Eastern Airlines passenger aircraft plowed into the Everglades about 20 years ago, no Seminole showed up in the rescue party. They can hardly be blamed. The Everglades are slowly being drained to provide water for communities elsewhere. It's changing the National Park from swamp to grassland, which seems like a bad idea, but that's just my opinion.Out from behind the lectern and into the movie. It's a product of the 1950s. After a grueling three-day trudge through the swamp, the men remain closely shaved by the studio barber. A clip on the jaw suffices to render a man unconscious for as long as the script requires. The sound track employs cries of the kookaburra, an Australian kingfisher that first was used in "Tarzan and the Green Goddess" (1938), in which Tarzan of the Apes discovers an ancient recipe for salad dressing.The female interest, Barbara Hale, is pretty, wears her hair in a modern style instead of the unsightly loaves of the period. She wears Max Factor and is never without precisely applied lipstick. And her role is a familiar one that has always worked -- she's torn between the uniformed Rock Hudson and their old friend, Anthony Quinn, who now leads his tribe in the swamp. Hudson is a tall, handsome white man. Quinn is a poor, proud, impassioned half-Indian. Guess who gets her.If you've seen John Ford's "Fort Apache" (1948) you'll have a decent idea of the plot. Martinet (Henry Fonda) wants war; younger officer (John Wayne) tries to discourage him.

Better than average drama with a decidedly pro Indian slant was one of the many films Rock cranked out on his way up, this was one of seven pictures he made in 1953. He gives a good performance, one of his better early ones, as the resolute soldier who is on trial for his life. The cast is full of familiar faces most of whom were also just starting out and would go on to greater fame like Lee Marvin, in good guy mode here, and Russell Johnson. Richard Carlson is the sore spot in the picture, he starts out okay but ends up chewing the scenery in an over the top performance. Barbara Hale was never particularly well served by films having much more success on TV as Della Street on Perry Mason nor is she very well used here but she looks probably the best she ever did on screen beautifully shot in Technicolor and as Revere Muldoon has one of the greatest character names ever. Not really a western, not even set in the west but Florida this is an enjoyable picture especially for military history buffs.