Fort Apache (1948)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Frank S. Nugent (screenplay)
James Warner Bellah (story)

Release Date:

9 March 1948 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Plot:

In John Ford's sombre exploration mythologising of American heroes, he slowly reveals the character of Owen Thursday...

Plot Keywords:

Military | Last Stand | Fanaticism | Ambition | Cult Western

Awards:

2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

John Wayne	...	Capt. Kirby York
Henry Fonda	...	Lt. Col. Owen Thursday
Shirley Temple	...	Philadelphia Thursday
Pedro Armendáriz	...	Sgt. Beaufort (as Pedro Armendariz)
Ward Bond	...	Sgt. Maj. Michael O'Rourke
George O'Brien	...	Capt. Sam Collingwood
Victor McLaglen	...	Sgt. Festus Mulcahy
Anna Lee	...	Mrs. Emily Collingwood
Irene Rich	...	Mrs. Mary O'Rourke
Dick Foran	...	Sgt. Quincannon
Guy Kibbee	...	Capt. Dr. Wilkens
Grant Withers	...	Silas Meacham
Jack Pennick	...	Sgt. Daniel Schattuck
Ray Hyke	...	Lt. Gates (Adjutant)
Movita	...	Guadalupe (Col. Thursday's cook)

Also Known As:

War Party

Runtime:

125 min | West Germany:84 min (cut version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Australia:G | Iceland:L | West Germany:6 (nf) | UK:U | USA:Approved (certificate #12819) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:S | Spain:T | South Korea:15 (DVD rating) (2002)

Filming Locations:

Arches National Park, Moab, Utah, USA

Company:

Argosy Pictures

Trivia:

The "Apache" Indians were really members of the Navajo tribe.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Col. Thursday leads a company "at a striking distance" from a repair patrol lead by Lt. O'Rourke. Sgt. Mulcahey is part of O'Rourke's patrol, but when the action shifts to show Col. Thursday's company in a saber charge against the Apache's there is a clear shot of Sgt. Mulcahey riding next to the flag bearer with his saber drawn. Note: this scene was duplicated from Col. Thursday's final charge against Cochise.

Quotes:

[the regiment has arrived near the Apache's encampment]
Lt. Col. Thursday: I propose, Captain Yorke, to deploy the men: two troops to the north, one to the east. You will then converge on the encampment.
Captain Yorke: I wouldn't do that, sir.
Lt. Col. Thursday: I'm not asking your advice, Captain. I'm merely stating.
Captain Yorke: The Apaches, sir, are neither to the north nor the east. Nor are they in their encampment. But if you'da been watching the dust swirls to the south, like most of us, you'd see that they're right there!
[points to the Apaches coming over the rise]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Rockford Files: Three Day Affair with a Thirty Day Escrow (#5.7)" (1978)

Soundtrack:

Sweet Genevieve

Very thoughtful, penetrating

Fort Apache

This beautifully shot western--the first in John Ford's so-called Cavalry Trilogy--about a fatuous Lieutenant (Henry Fonda) whose hubris seriously endangers an isolated frontier outpost, grabbed me by the throat in its quietly scathing indictment of military leaders who needlessly risk the lives of their soldiers to win vague notions of heroism for posterity.

Fonda's Lieutenant Colonel Thursday seems an obvious stand-in for General Custer and the film, despite its reputation, seems less derogatory toward Native Americans than keen to extol the virtues of honorable combat agreed upon between two forthright leaders. Note the penultimate scene, occurring after the massacre, in which Wayne, Thursday's successor, wearily addresses reporters eager to talk about Thursday's `legacy': A glossy portrait of the Lieutenant lords over the room, as Wayne discusses Thursday's merits, while looking out fondly at his battalion, their reflection superimposed over Wayne's gaze. This film is not anti-war, rather pro-service and pro-battle. It is not, however, supportive of egregious fronts to the sanctity of human life; a rather interesting contra-distinction, to be sure.