Fort Massacre

Fort Massacre
Directed by	Joseph M. Newman
Written by	Martin Goldsmith
Produced by	Walter Mirisch
Starring	Joel McCrea Forrest Tucker John Russell Susan Cabot
Cinematography	Carl E. Guthrie
Edited by	Richard Heermance
Music by	Marlin Skiles
Production company	The Mirisch Company
Distributed by	United Artists Corporation
Release date	May 1, 1958 (1958-05-01)
Running time	80 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Fort Massacre is a 1958 American Western film, directed by Joseph M. Newman, starring: Joel McCrea, Forrest Tucker, John Russell and Susan Cabot. A possibly mad cavalry commander leads his troops through dangerous Indian territory.

Plot

An embittered cavalry sergeant must take over his regiment after their commanding officer is killed during an ambush. Vinson is driven by his hatred of Apaches, who were responsible for the death of his wife and children. He and his remaining men, including Travis and McGurney, try to ride 100 miles (161 km) to the safety of Fort Crane, a fictional analogue of Fort Craig in New Mexico Territory. Along the way they attack an Indian band, despite being heavily outnumbered. Vinson's vengeance knows no bounds, until Travis is ultimately forced to take a stand and confront him.

Cast

• Joel McCrea as Sgt. Vinson
• Forrest Tucker as Pvt. McGurney
• Susan Cabot as Piute Girl
• John Russell as Pvt. Robert W. Travis
• George N. Neise as Pvt. Pendleton
• Anthony Caruso as Pawnee (Indian scout)
• Robert Osterloh as Pvt. Schwabacker
• Denver Pyle as Pvt. Collins
• Francis McDonald as Old Piute Man (as Francis J. McDonald)
• Guy Prescott as Pvt. Tucker
• Rayford Barnes as Pvt. Moss
• Irving Bacon as Charlie the Trader
• Claire Carleton as Adele (Charlie's wife)
• Larry Chance as Moving Cloud

Reception

Reviewing the film in 2023, Mark Franklin writes:

A well-done, though mostly downbeat, cavalry vs. Indians film. Vinson's a complicated man. He can explain his decisions with military rationale, but he guns down one Apache who's trying to surrender and sparks a final skirmish when there's a chance to avoid gunfire...

The climax comes when Vinson decides his small command will take refuge in a cliff dwelling to give a badly wounded trooper time to rest. 'Okay, we'll build our own fort,' another disgruntled trooper says. "Fort Massacre." They find an old Indian and his daughter living there. Eventually, the Apache war band shows up as well.

External links

• Fort Massacre at IMDb
• Fort Massacre at the TCM Movie Database (archived)
• Fort Massacre at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films