Pony Soldier is a surprisingly
entertaining little watch considering very little actually happens in
the film. This 1952 Canadian Western starring Tyrone Power is
beautifully photographed and moves along at a quick pace. What makes
this film so interesting and refreshing is that it' one of the few
Westerns of it's time to show Native Americans in a more positive &
sympathetic light. This time around they were more three dimensional
characters, not just peace pipe smoking killing machines as they were
often portrayed.
The film is set in 1876 and deals with
a Canadian Mounted Police constable Duncan MacDonald (Tyrone Power).
Who has recently just be posted to Fort Walsh, Duncan is tasked with
negotiating the release of two hostages.
These two hostages are being
held by the Cree Indians. The reason for the kidnapping of these two
was an interesting one. Due to the horrendous winter of 1876 the
Cree's were forced to head South to the states to hunt and gather
food. The fact that they were leaving their stretch of land didn't
sit to well with others. So they were chased back (After a bit of a
battle) by some American cavalrymen. So in response the Cree's shot
up a stage coach with some flaming arrows and took the two people
occupying it hostage.
These two people are a no good fugitive
Jess Calhoun (Robert Horton) & Emerald Neeley (The lovely Penny
Edwards). Duncan is soon joined up with a comic side kick of sorts
Natayo Smith (Thomas Gomwz) who knows the way of the land. Once they
reach the Cree camp, soon begins a long negotiation process with the
tribal leader Standing Bear (Stuart Randall). Also Duncan has to deal
with a rather blood thirsty dog soldier played with devilish glee by
Cameron Mitchell (Yes the same C-Mitchell from Bava's Blood and Black
Lace). Also along the way Duncan even comes upon and adopts a Cree Indian boy (Anthony Numkena)
Light on action and heavy on issues of
talky diplomacy this flick isn't for everyone. I'd say it's very much
a love it or hate it type of film. It certainly kept me entertained
for it's 82 minute running time but this wasn't do to the action or
adventure. There is very little action or adventure in this fine
film. As about 90 percent of the film takes place at the Cree's camp.
But the stellar performances from all
involved and the absolutely stunning cinematography from Alex North
kept my interest. Sure the film is melodramatic at times and the
whole adopting a kid sub-plot is a tad hokey. But this was one of
those harmless Westerns you'd watch with your Dad on a Saturday
afternoon. For that reason is brought back very fond memories. It's
really got little to no violence and is very family friendly as well.
The performances all around the board
are solid. Tyrone Power was a fantastic actor who you've probably
seen in plenty of those great old swashbuckler flicks. It takes a
little time getting used to him in the role of a Canadian Mountie but
it works. Thomas Gomez as Power's side kick really brings a great
sense of humor to the film. Sure he's not convincing as an Indian at
all but the humor makes up for that. Stuart Randall as the leader of
the Cree job does a very credible job. Never once does his character
fall into the usual traps of stereotypes that Native American
characters in most westerns did.
Penny Edwards is a nice touch to the
cast, she doesn't have many lines but she's gorgeous to look at. Of
special note as well is the score by Alex North. Truly a memorable
one at that.
One thing you'll notice right off the
bat though is even though it's set in Canada it certainly wasn't
filmed there. It happened to be filmed in Sedona, Arizona of all
places. The production even faced a bit of film karma pay back since
the production was disrupted by what? Of all things a snow storm...
the production was even halted a bit when the entire cast/crew saw a
flash in the sky. Caused by nuclear weapon being tested 3000 miles
away in Nevada.
Pony Soldier is released onto Blu-ray
courtesy of the fine folks at Twilight Time.
The 1080P 1.33:1 transfer is very nice,
it's not perfect by a long stretch. In some scenes the colors will
really pop and the black levels stay fairly solid throughout. But
parts of the film are bathed in a very milky look and many of the
scenes of soft. But for a film made in 1952, I'm guessing this is
the best it looked since it played theaters back in the day. The
transfer might disappoint Twilight Time fans but I'm guessing they
did the most with the elements they were able to acquire.
The DTS-HD 1.0 Master Audio is rather
good. It's a clean, pleasing to the ears audio track. No background
noise is apparent, the dialog and especially the music sound crisp
enough.
For extras were are treated an isolated
score of Alex North's muzak for the film. Even though this is the
sole extra it's very nice inclusion because it's truly a memorable
score. You also get a six page booklet consisting of linear notes
written by film historian Julie Kirgo.
All and all I really enjoyed this film
and if your a die hard Tyrone Power fan or dig vintage westerns...
give this badboy a look. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
If your interested in purchasing a copy
head on over to www.screenarchives.com
only 3,000 copies were made.
No comments:
Post a Comment