A day to fight
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | A day to fight |
| Original title | Custer of the West |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1967 |
| length | 142 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 12 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Robert Siodmak |
| script |
Bernard Gordon , Julian Zimet |
| production | Philip Yordan |
| music | Bernardo Segall |
| camera | Cecilio Paniagua |
| cut |
Peter Parasheles , Maurice Rootes |
| occupation | |
| |
A day to fight (Original title: Custer of the West ) is an American western by the director Robert Siodmak from 1967. The film tells the story of the aspiring US officer George Armstrong Custer , who in 1876 the 7th Cavalry in led the battle of Little Bighorn and died in the process. The film premiered on January 24, 1968. In Germany it first appeared on March 28, 1968. It was also shown on German television under the title Big Horn - A Day to Fight .
action
The young George Armstrong Custer takes command of the 7th Cavalry after a successful military career in the American Civil War . His wife Elizabeth accompanies him to the west. The resident Indians rebel against the reservation plans of the American government. Custer wants to defeat the Indians, but clashes with the alcoholic Major Marcus Reno. Lieutenant Benteen also has to fight against Custer's plan, because he can understand the plight the Indians are in.
Surprisingly, General Philip Sheridan visits the troops and gives Custer the order to attack a Cheyenne village in order to convince the politicians in Washington that only attacks are the right way to bring the Indians to reason. Custer obeys orders, but women and children are also killed in the attack. Custer rejects peace talks with Chief Dull Knife.
When gold is found on the Indian reservation, some of Custer's men desert, who then has the leader, Sergeant Mulligan, executed. Meanwhile, the US government is declaring the contracts with the Indians null and void. After the Indian attack on a new train line that runs through their territory, Custer is ordered to Washington. There he realizes that President Grant only has the interests of the railroad and mine operators in mind. After talking about it, Custer is released from his command.
Custer learns that without him his unit is pulling against the Indians. His wife intervenes successfully, her husband is allowed to lead his troops into battle. At Little Big Horn there is a battle in which the Indian soldiers outnumber. The 7th Cavalry is completely wiped out, Custer is the last to die.
background
The film was shot in Spain . In addition to the Atelier Chamartin, Madrid, recordings were made in Almería , Castile and Andalusia , but also in Sweden . Director Siodmak was hired after the Japanese Akira Kurosawa stopped working on the film.
It premiered on January 24, 1968 in Houston , Germany, on March 28, 1968 in the Royal, Munich.
Ty Hardin is known to German television viewers as the leading actor in several television series ( Bronco , SOS - charter boat ). Mary Ure, born in Scotland, not only played General Custer's wife, she was actually married to his actor Robert Shaw.
Reviews
For the lexicon of international film , the production was “an elaborate, epic, broad-based cavalry western that deals with historical events very freely and transfigured a brutal militarist into a romantic hero”. The criticism of Cinema had the same tenor : “[Robert Siodmak] shot monumental action, but his transfiguration of the Indian eater Custer seems embarrassing today. Conclusion: Magnificent scenes, lying heroic pathos. "
Variety praised Robert Shaw's vigorous performance and Robert Ryan's powerful brief appearance. For the TV Guide , on the other hand, the film was just an "undemanding biography" that was brought to an end "cheaply and bloodlessly" after Kurosawa's departure. The TimeOut film guide spoke of an "ambitious work", which failed because of the script and whose authors could not have decided how the protagonist should be portrayed.
Joe Hembus noted that the film confirms Custer's legend. In the film he was "the picture book military who fell victim to a corrupt government policy and the wretched verasagen of his subordinate Reno, a great man in a state of emergency". Shaw in particular contributed to this heroic transfiguration through his portrayal. Phil Hardy judged the film to be “the Carnival version of the Custer myth” and that it had “ sideshow - Cinerama effects” such as a driverless train. Only Shaw's portrayal of Custer "as a Peter Pan figure " was "convincing".
Web links
- Custer of the West in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- A day to fight in the online film database
Individual evidence
- ↑ See imdb.com
- ↑ Robert Siodmak . In: CineGraph - Lexicon for German-language film .
- ↑ A day to fight. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed May 25, 2019 .
- ↑ See cinema.de
- ^ Custer of the West . In: Variety , 1968.
- ↑ See tvguide.com
- ↑ See timeout.com
- ↑ Joe Hembus: Western Lexicon - 1272 films from 1894-1975. Carl Hanser Verlag Munich Vienna 2nd edition 1977. ISBN 3-446-12189-7 . P. 164.
- ^ Phil Hardy: The Encyclopedia of Western Movies. Woodbury Press Minneapolis 1984. ISBN 0-8300-0405-X . P. 307.