I saw this for the first time recently n only cos of Alan Ladd. Been generous with a 6 cos of Ladd, Bronson n some great, sun soaked settings. Apart from the above mentioned qualities, this is an average western. I can't comment on the historical context as i am not aware. But most movies showed the poor red Indians as savage which is unfair cos i believe one man's hero is another man's villain.

Coming back to this film, it did show the native Indians in a bad light. Alan Ladd's character describing how his family got butchered. The Natives planning for a double standards during a peace powwow. The Natives shooting unarmed civilians.

The plot - A veteran Indian fighter Johnny MacKay (Alan Ladd) is appointed peace commissioner by the President to end the hostilities between settlers, soldiers and Modoc renegades. Johnny is helped by the children of an old Modoc chief who tells Johnny that it is a chief called Captain Jack (Charles Bronson) and his band of brutal renegades are opposing the peace negotiations while most of the other Modocs wish to coexist n live in peace.

They called the ¨wanderer¨ because a horse was his home . They called him ¨Injun-lover¨ but never to his face but they called on him when everyone else had run away . All the special beauty and drama of Oregon's Modoc lava-lands in Cinemascope . President Grant orders Indian fighter MacKay (Alan Ladd) to deal with the Modocs of northern California and southern Oregon . McKay sets out to negotiate a peace treaty with the renegade Indian leader nicknamed Captain Jack (Charles Bronson , he had just changed his name from his real one , Buchinski) , a believable rebel chief .

Good Indian-cavalry Western based on real incidents . This first-rate Western draws its riveting tale and power from the interaction of finely drawn roles as well as adventure and formidable action . Two-fisted Bronson enjoyed one of his first big roles in this spectacular story , overshadowing Alan Ladd who was film producer along with Delmer Daves . Tough-guy Ladd plays as a scout and expert Indian fighter , this is his best performance since ¨Shane¨ . Delmer Daves does a good work , an energetic and exciting movie , pitting two antagonist characters against the rugged toughness forced a vast natural environment throughout the trail . Highlight the exemplary value of the landscape as essential dramatic figure, and the narrative takes a brisk pace but not fast, a dash dense but not cumbersome . Colorful cinematography broke away from the traditional images to drape the Western backdrop convincingly in glimmer Warnercolor . Evocative and appropriate musical score by the classic Victor Young . The motion picture is well directed by Delmer Daves - including his characteristic use of landscape that helps the most spectacular scenes- , a Western expert as proved in the notorious ¨Broken arrow¨ , his first big Western ; furthermore , he made ¨The hanging tree¨ , ¨3:10 to Yuma¨, ¨The last wagon¨, Jubal , ¨Cowboy¨, ¨Return of the Texan¨ . And of course ¨Drum beat¨ that turns out to be stylish, fast paced , solid, meticulous and with enjoyable look . This well acted movie is gripping every step of the way . An unjustly forgotten film results to be a nice western and remains consistently agreeable . Rating : Above average , worthwhile watching .

The story is based on historical facts , these are the following : The Modocs , a small tribe of northern California , they were fishers , hunters , slave traders and warriors . In 1864 the Modocs reluctantly ceded their tribal lands to the United States and were moved to the Klamath Indian Reservation in Oregon . The Modocs could not live peacefully with the more powerful Klamath tribe and a band of Modocs under the leadership of Kintpuash , better known as Captain Jack , left the reservation and returned to their former lands . They refused to go back the reservation and the army was sent to forcibly remove them ; the result was so-called Modoc War of 1872-3 . Captain Jack and his followers took up an almost impregnable position in the Lava Beds on the California-Oregon border ; the Lava Beds provided a natural stronghold of contorted masses of solidified volcanic lava , a broken region of natural rock trenches and caves . Here , Captain Jack held off superior forces for months . Finally he and his followers surrounded . Captain Jack and four other Modocs were tried by court martial and hanged at Fort Klamath on 3 October 1873 . The survivors of his band were sent to a reservation in the Indian territory of Oklahoma.

It's 1872. Johnny MacKay (Alan Ladd) is the best Indian fighter in Oregon. He arrives at the White House to talk to President Grant. He is appointed peace commissioner to convince renegade Modoc Indian Captain Jack (Charles Bronson) to lead his people back to the reservation.

The history may be real but it's told from one side of the conflict. This is an old fashion western in more than one way. It definitely has the scenery. Most white folks starting with MacKay are simply trying to keep the peace. The Indians are the trouble makers along with some white settlers. It's an early role for Bronson and he does some fine red-face acting. Alan Ladd is doing very blend acting. It's probably deliberate to give this character the persona of a peace giver. It may be propaganda but it works for the audience of its day. The American government only wants to help the red savage and some just refuse to be civilized.