This film opens with Union Army officer Lt. Frank Hewitt encountering a group of Comanche; they are off the reservation without permission but as they are unarmed and peaceful he allows them to continue on their way. When his CO, Col. Chivington, hears about this he sets off to teach the Comanche a lesson about doing what they are told... this 'lesson' is Sand Creek Massacre. Hewitt knows that after such an atrocity the Indians will understandable go on the war path and one place they are likely to strike is his home in Texas. Knowing this he deserts and heads south. Wearing Union blue he is not too welcome when he arrives in Confederate Texas but after an attack leaves one woman dead the other people start to believe him. Since the war is on there is only one man left in town and he is clearly only out to save his own skin... if he is save the women he must get them ready to fight.
B-western regular Audie Murphy puts in a fine performance as Lt. Hewett; the more I see him in films like this the more I'm surprised he better known. The women are a varied bunch and the actresses do well enough even though this is clearly Murphy's film. The action is fairly solid and if you are expecting the women to prevail without taking a single casualty you will be surprised as quite a few die. There were of course a few flaws; it did seem strange that Hewett went into Confederate Texas in his Union uniform, equally it seemed strange that all but one of the men would have left the settlement; I'd have thought there would be a few old men at the very least although accept that it was necessary for the narrative. The epilogue where Hewitt returns to his unit and avoids punishment when the women turn up to vouch for him did seem sill after the action that had gone before. Over all it was pretty entertaining though and I'm sure fans of B-westerns looking for something different will enjoy this. It is of interest to note that while this is obviously a work of fiction Col. Chivington was a real person and he was involved in the Sand Creek Massacre in Colorado, where his troops slaughtered numerous Indians; mainly women and children.
B-western regular Audie Murphy puts in a fine performance as Lt. Hewett; the more I see him in films like this the more I'm surprised he better known. The women are a varied bunch and the actresses do well enough even though this is clearly Murphy's film. The action is fairly solid and if you are expecting the women to prevail without taking a single casualty you will be surprised as quite a few die. There were of course a few flaws; it did seem strange that Hewett went into Confederate Texas in his Union uniform, equally it seemed strange that all but one of the men would have left the settlement; I'd have thought there would be a few old men at the very least although accept that it was necessary for the narrative. The epilogue where Hewitt returns to his unit and avoids punishment when the women turn up to vouch for him did seem sill after the action that had gone before. Over all it was pretty entertaining though and I'm sure fans of B-westerns looking for something different will enjoy this. It is of interest to note that while this is obviously a work of fiction Col. Chivington was a real person and he was involved in the Sand Creek Massacre in Colorado, where his troops slaughtered numerous Indians; mainly women and children.