User Reviews

American movies and TV have a less-than-stellar record in treating the relationship of reds and whites. Attitudes range from "Kill them heathen redskins!" to "Please please please forgive us". *

"Gunsmoke" was generally respectful in its treatment of aboriginal peoples. Matt speaks at least one Indian language, and is portrayed as a 19th-century rarity -- a man with no irrational hatred of the "first peoples", who feels that most problems can be solved with patience and common sense.

That's basically what this story is about. Thomas Evans (played by the always-wonderful Gene Evans) is another rarity -- an Indian agent who //doesn't// cheat the Indians. He wants what's best for them -- //his// idea of what's best. This includes disarming them and limiting their range of movement, to reduce their potential threat (and, presumably, white over-reaction to that threat).

Many reviewers (and whoever wrote the Wikipedia plot summary) see him as a villain. He isn't. Evans is repeatedly shown as a thoughtful man who is genuinely interested in the truth. When he finally turns to John Eagle Wing and sincerely asks "What do //you// want?", we believe him.

White Buffalo is played by an apparently white actor, Richard Hale, who, other than his untanned skin, looks remarkably Indian. ** (He was commonly cast in "exotic" roles.) He was also an opera singer, which explains how he's able to handle White Buffalo's chanting so effortlessly.

His grandson, John Eagle Wing, is played by Todd Armstrong -- yes, that Todd Armstrong. Armstrong was gay, and there have long been rumors that his voice in "Jason and the Argonauts" was dubbed because it was too high-pitched. Not here. Armstrong gives a sturdy, convincing performance, delivering his "big speech" at the end very well. One wonders why he didn't get more roles.

I'd like to say something nice about Jack Elam -- one of the greatest character actors, ever -- but his role as a government official gives him no opportunity to display his manifold skills -- other than possibly surprising the audience with his normal speaking voice. (The director, John Totten, apparently didn't mind fully revealing Elam's bad eye. This is a welcome change from the dozens of guest actors who have incredibly perfect white teeth.)

As a white man, I have no idea how native people would view this episode. But it seems to mostly sidestep the problems that beset this sort of story: a patronizing attitude toward Indians (sometimes portraying them as "noble savages"); excessive guilty chest-beating on the part of the whites; a neatly wrapped-up feel-good ending (though it comes close to the latter).

An episode worth watching.

* "Dances with Wolves" falls roughly in the latter category. The Extended Cut presents a more nuanced and less sentimental view, with the Lakota portrayed as sometimes mindlessly vicious, and Dunbar recognizing that there is a gulf between white and red culture that he will never be able to cross.

** He probably could have been made up, but one suspects the producers were rightly afraid of stirring up ill feelings.