A Distant Trumpet
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A Distant Trumpet
Plot
Troy Donahue stars in this drive-in quality "B"-Western from the Warner Brothers backlot, directed by veteran director Raoul Walsh. Donahue is U.S. Cavalry Lieutenant Matt Hazard, who arrives at Fort Delivery on the Mexican border of Arizona for a new assignment. Kitty Mainwaring (Suzanne Pleshette), the wife of the commanding officer, greets Hazard upon his arrival. The next day, when he takes some of his men outside of the fort to gather wood, Hazard and his men find themselves attacked by Indians. Hazard survives and later saves Kitty from another Indian attack. A terrible storm forces the two to spend a night in a cave as they make their way back to the fort. Meanwhile, the new commander, General Quait (James Gregory), arrives at the fort and takes command -- his first order of business to launch an all-out war on the Indians. He tries to capture the belligerent Indian Chief War Eagle but fails. When Hazard arrives back at the fort, Quait orders Hazard into Mexico to convince War Eagle to surrender. Hazard has War Eagle agree to return with him on the promise that the Indians can have a safe haven at an Arizona reservation. But, on their way back to the fort, they are met by Major Miller (Lane Bradford), who, instead, orders the Indians to be sent to Florida. Hazard and Quaint end up traveling to Washington to try to convince the United States government to reverse their decision against the Indians. ~ Paul Brenner, RoviReview
Director Raoul Walsh ended a distinguished career with the middling, run-of-the-mill A Distant Trumpet. Walsh by this time could have made a Western in his sleep, and it at times feels as if that's what he did here. Granted, the director was working with two disadvantages: the so-so screenplay and the deadly lack of acting skills of leading man Troy Donahue. It has to be admitted that there's not a lot that could be done with either one. The plot is okay, neither great nor terrible, although it does get a bit confused as to how it wants to treat Native Americans. But the writers don't take the plot and make it into anything of any real interest. Worse, Donahue drains the screen of any interest whenever he appears. His performance is one-note and wooden, and he lacks the power that a Western star needs in order to hold the film together and, ultimately, force it to make sense. Walsh does have feisty Suzanne Pleshette on hand, and she enlivens things, and there's some decent work from Diane McBain and James Gregory. But the only part of Trumpet that is really exceptional is the stunning cinematography by the dependably William Clothier, creating gorgeous vistas that do tend to knock one's socks off. ~ Craig Butler, RoviCast
- Troy Donahue - Lt. Matthew Hazard
- Suzanne Pleshette - Kitty
- Diane McBain - Laura
- James Gregory - Gen. Quait
- William Reynolds - Lt. Theo Mainwaring
Credit
William L. Campbell - Art Director, Howard Shoup - Costume Designer, Raoul Walsh - Director, David Wages - Editor, Max Steiner - Composer (Music Score), William H. Clothier - Cinematographer, William H. Wright - Producer, Albert Beich - Screenwriter, Richard Fielder - Screenwriter, Derek N. Twist - Screenwriter, John Twist - Screenwriter, Paul Horgan - Book Author| A Distant Thunder (1970 Film), A Distant Shore: African Americans of D-Day (2007 Film) | |
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A Distant Trumpet
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A Distant Trumpet
| A Distant Trumpet | |
|---|---|
 French theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Raoul Walsh |
| Produced by | William H. Wright |
| Written by | John Twist |
| Starring | Troy Donahue Suzanne Pleshette William Reynolds |
| Music by | Max Steiner |
| Cinematography | William H. Clothier |
| Editing by | David Wages |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release date(s) | May 27, 1964 |
| Running time | 117 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
A Distant Trumpet is a 1964 American Western film, the last directed by Raoul Walsh. It stars Troy Donahue, Suzanne Pleshette and Diane McBain.
The screenplay by John Twist, Albert Beich, and Richard Fielder is based on the 1951 novel of the same name by Paul Horgan.
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Contents
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Plot
In 1883, US Cavalry lieutenant Matthew Hazard, newly graduated from West Point, is assigned to isolated Fort Delivery on the Mexican border of Arizona, where he meets commanding officer Teddy Mainwarring's wife Kitty, whom he later rescues from an Indian attack.
Soon after a new commander, Major General Alexander Quait, takes charge. When his efforts to capture Chiricahua chief War Eagle fail, he orders Hazard into Mexico to cajole the man into surrendering. Hazard convinces War Eagle to return with him with the promise the Indians will be provided a safe haven at a reservation in Arizona. En route to the fort, they encounter Major Miller, who orders the Indians be sent to Florida. Hazard and Quaint journey to Washington, D.C. to request government officials to reverse their decision and allow Hazard to keep his word to War Eagle.
Cast
- Troy Donahue as Matthew Hazard
- Suzanne Pleshette as Kitty Mainwarring
- William Reynolds as Teddy Mainwarring
- James Gregory as Alexander Quaint
- Diane McBain as Laura Frelief
- Claude Akins as Seely Jones
- Kent Smith as Secretary of War
Critical reception
In his review in the New York Times, Bosley Crowther called the film "a deadly bore...so dull you even lose interest in watching the horses and the stunt men doing their stuff...Seldom has there been a Western picture on which so much money was spent...from which so little excitement, energy or colorfulness exudes. It's as though Mr. Walsh and everybody were bitten by tsetse flies and went through the business of shooting the picture in a state of drowsiness."[1]
Variety said, "The stunning location terrain of the Red Rocks area of New Mexico and Arizona's Painted Desert gives the production a tremendous pictorial lift. Max Steiner's score is a driving dramatic force but the use of the main theme seems a trifle excessive. The picture would benefit from a lot more pruning by editor David Wages."[2]
Time Out New York feels that despite "an average script and a colourless lead performance from Donahue" the film "[emerges] as a majestically simple, sweeping cavalry Western, a little reminiscent of Ford in mood and manner. Brilliantly shot by William Clothier, it tends to have its cake and eat it by indulging in a spectacular massacre before introducing the liberal message, but still goes further than most in according respect to the Indian by letting him speak his own language (with subtitles)."[3]
References
External links
- A Distant Trumpet at the Internet Movie Database
- A Distant Trumpet at Turner Classic Movies
- A Distant Trumpet at AllRovi
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