Savage Wilderness [VHS]
Trapper Jed Cooper (Victor Mature) signs on as a scout at a remote army post in Oregon. In time, Colonel Marston (Robert Preston) arrives at the fort and, as ranking officer, relieves Captain Riordan (Guy Madison) of his command. Riordan is outraged to find out that Marston lost his fort and men to an Indian attack; in fact, he was assigned to a Western outpost after squandering the lives of 1,500 men in a Civil War battle. Marston's next plan is to order the men of the fort, almost all rookie soldiers, into battle against experienced Indian warriors. What would otherwise be a fairly routine Western drama is enlivened by Anthony Mann's direction, lavish CinemaScope cinematography, and fine, offbeat performances all around. The story line reflects the changes that were beginning to work their way into the Western genre by the 1950s.Savage Wilderness(taken from the novelThe Gilded Rooster, by Richard Emery Roberts) may not quite pack the dramatic impact of prime John Ford, but it's still a fine example of the state of the Western in 1956. Also known asThe Last Frontier.--Jerry Renshaw