Little Big Horn (also known as The Fighting Seventh) is a 1951 American Western film written and directed by Charles Marquis Warren starring Lloyd Bridges, John Ireland and Marie Windsor.
It was also known as The Fighting Seventh.
Plot
Captain Phillip Donlin (Lloyd Bridges) and his small troop must rush to reach Little Big Horn in order to warn General Custer of the Sioux attack that awaits him. As they race against time, and Donlin pushes them hard through an arduous and dangerous journey, the Sioux start taking out the soldiers one at a time. Meanwhile, Donlin also clashes with Lt. John Haywood (John Ireland), who Donlin knows is having an affair with his wife, Celie (Marie Windsor).
Cast
Lloyd Bridges as Capt. Phillip Donlin
John Ireland as Lt. John Haywood
Marie Windsor as Celie Donlin
Reed Hadley as Sgt. Maj. Peter Grierson
Jim Davis as Cpl. Doan Moylan
Wally Cassell as Pvt. Danny Zecca
Hugh O'Brian as Pvt. Al DeWalt
King Donovan as Pvt. James Corbo
Richard Emory as Pvt. Mitch Shovels
John Pickard as Sgt. Vet McCloud
Richard Sherwood as Pvt. David Mason
Sheb Wooley as Quince
Larry Stewart as Bugler Stevie Williams
Rodd Redwing as Cpl. Arika (as Rod Redwing) Dick Paxton as Pvt. Ralph Hall (as Richard Paxton) Gordon Wynn as Pvt. Arndt Hofstetter Ted Avery as Pvt. Tim Harvey Barbara Woodell as Margaret Owen Anne Warren as Anne Owen
Production
It was to be the first of a two-picture deal Charles Marquis Warren had with Republic Pictures. Warren was a leading writer at the time best known for Only the Valiant and he wanted to become a director. The film was called The Black Hills and was to be produced by Joseph Kane and star Rod Cameron. Filming was to start 10 March 1950.
The film eventually shifted to Lippert Pictures. Filming was to have started 7 November 1950. However it was pushed back to February. Lloyd Bridges was the star.
In an interview, Marie Windsor recalled an executive from Lippert Films announced the film had run out of money, with the production having several pages torn out of the script, and the film finished without certain scenes being done.
Reception
The film was a box office hit. It launched Warren's career as a director.
Critical Assessment
Writing in The Nation, film critic Manny Farber calls Little Big Horn “a tough-minded, unconventional, persuasive look” at the events surrounding General George Armstrong Custer's defeat at the hands of the Soiux and Cheyenne under Sitting Bull in 1876.
Farber praises the film for its “unpolished handling of the regular-army soldier…for once, men appear as individuals, rather than types—grousing, ornery, uprooted, complicated individuals, riding off to glory against their will and better judgment; working together as a team in a genuinely loose, efficient, unfriendly American style.
Awards
It was nominated for an award by the Writers Guild of America in 1952.
Footnotes
Sources
Farber, Manny. 2009. Farber on Film: The Complete Film Writings of Manny Farber. Edited by Robert Polito. Library of America.