Cheyenne Autumn (1964)

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Mari Sandoz (novel)
James R. Webb (screenplay)

Release Date:

3 October 1964 (USA)

Genre:

History | Western

Tagline:

LAND-GRABBING DOLLAR PATRIOTS!

Plot:

When the government agency fails to deliver even the meager supplies due by treaty to the proud Cheyenne tribe in their barren desert reserve...

Plot Keywords:

Journey | Cavalry | Doc Holliday | Teaching English | Reservation

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Richard Widmark	...	Capt. Thomas Archer
Carroll Baker	...	Deborah Wright
Karl Malden	...	Capt. Wessels
Sal Mineo	...	Red Shirt
Dolores del Rio	...	Spanish Woman (as Dolores Del Rio)
Ricardo Montalban	...	Little Wolf
Gilbert Roland	...	Dull Knife
Arthur Kennedy	...	Doc Holliday
Patrick Wayne	...	Second Lieut. Scott
Elizabeth Allen	...	Miss Plantagenet
John Carradine	...	Jeff Blair
Victor Jory	...	Tall Tree
Mike Mazurki	...	Sr. First Sergeant
George O'Brien	...	Major Braden
Sean McClory	...	Dr. O'Carberry

Also Known As:

John Ford's Cheyenne Autumn (UK) (complete title) (USA) (complete title)
The Long Flight (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

154 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (RCA Sound System) (70 mm prints) | Mono (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | West Germany:12 | USA:Approved (certificate #20635) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:11 | Argentina:13 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Arches National Park, Moab, Utah, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The final duel between Little Wolf and Red Shirt was shot on the day that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, TX. Though legends say that John Ford, so saddened by the death of the first Irish president of the nation, mourned his death by halting the shoot on that day, production documents actually show that it was the only scene to be shot that day, and they moved from Utah in the afternoon as originally scheduled.

Goofs:

Factual errors: James Stewart and Arthur Kennedy are clearly both far too old to be Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday.

Quotes:

Capt. Thomas Archer: Scott, tell me something.
2nd Lt. Scott: Sir?
Capt. Thomas Archer: What put the blood in your eyes?
2nd Lt. Scott: It's just a private matter, sir.
Capt. Thomas Archer: Nothing that affects an officer's conduct is private.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Domicile conjugal (1970)

Long walk home.

This is one of the most desperate of John Ford's movies ,and in spite of its optimistic conclusion,we do know that the true ending will be much more atrocious.(After all,it's not Winter yet).Such terrible is the Cheyennes's plight that Ford made some kind of anti-epic whereas a lesser talent would have put the emphasis on the spectacular scenes,with turgid music.The score actually recalls some kind of dirge.These Indians dragging themselves under the burning sun or in the snow are like Mosis's people longing for the promised land.But unlike the Jews ,their Gods seem to have completely forgotten them .The young quaker (Baker) who befriends the Indians and the virtuous officer played by Widmark are the only white people who help them : they are Ford's spoke persons."If I left them,I would become a deserter" says the schoolteacher.Widmark's last line (to a young Indian girl) is :"your country!".

I would have given a 9 if the James Stewart scenes had been deleted.It's minor quibbling."Cheyenne Autumn" is also "Ford Autumn" for it's his last western and one of his last works.A moving swansong.