The Last Wagon (1956) User Reviews

Beautiful Western!

[jpdoherty · 8/10 · 24 June 2009]

THE LAST WAGON is one of those splendid unforgettable Cinemascope/Colour westerns Fox was so good at producing in the fifties. "Garden Of Evil", "Broken Lance", "The Tall Men","Warlock" and "The Bravados" etc. were all part of "Fox's Fifties Cinemascope Western Cycle" but THE LAST WAGON stands out in front as being arguably the most beautiful looking among them! Directed by the stalwart yet somewhat underrated Delmer Daves whose movies always had a certain glossy and radiant look to them. Particularly striking about his films was the rich location photography i.e. "Broken Arrow", "Jubal", "The Hanging Tree", "Susan Slade", "Spencer's Mountain" etc. THE LAST WAGON is no exception with the beautiful Arizona locations looking even more spectacular than usual.

Lionel Newman's strident Indian theme over the titles immediately sets the tone for the adventure that is to follow. Richard Widmark - sporting the colourful name of Comanche Todd - plays a wrongly accused outlaw guiding a group of teenagers across hostile Indian country after their folks have been massacred by Apaches. Widmark is terrific in the part, bringing to his role a palpable authenticity and hard bitten realism. It is one of his great he-man outdoor action roles and not unlike the part he played the same year in "Run For The Sun" (itself a splendid reworking of "The Most Dangerous Game"). The supporting cast are excellent. George Mathews as the unsavoury and brutish sheriff, Douglas Kennedy as the upright Wagonmaster, the beautiful Susan Kohner (whatever happened to?),as his half breed daughter, Stephenie Griffin as her bigoted sister, Ray Stricklyn, the ill-fated Nick Adams and Tommy Rettig as the young brother of the film's leading lady the lovely Felicia Farr. Trivia fans will no doubt remember the ill-fated Rettig played Widmark's eight year old son in Kazan's brilliant "Panic In The Streets" six years earlier. Also in the cast is a young James Drury as a cavalry officer in one of his early Pre "Virginian" roles.

The DVD looks gorgeous! With glowing colour, well defined sharp as a button images and the Cinemascope camera of Wilfrid Cline taking full advantage of those eye-catching backdrops (the incredible red rock locations at Sedona, Arizona). And not forgetting the wonderful score by Lionel Newman which is probably the best thing this younger brother of the great Alfred Newman ever did. Extras include a good trailer and a couple of photo galleries. A must for the collection of every western and every Widmark fan.

Typical line from Widmark - referring to the Nick Adams character.... "We've got six bullets and that idiot uses up three of them on a stinkin' rattler you could kill with a stick". Great Stuff!

A fine western adventure

[NewEnglandPat · 7/10 · 15 August 2003]

This story chronicles the trials of a fugitive half-breed and the survivors of an Indian attack on a wagon train. Richard Widmark is the tough, steely hero who aims to guide the survivors to safety through the desert and clear his name in a murder case. The plot is basically one of survival and redemption and the picture fleshes out Widmark's character in dramatic fashion, first as an abused prisoner, then as a trail savvy outsider who must bring to safety folks who dislike him because of his reputation. The film has fine action scenes but tends to dwell on the attitudes of the young whites who resent being dependent on Widmark, yet realize they need him to pull them out of harm's way. Felicia Farr is good as the woman who falls for Widmark in spite of his troubled past, as are Susan Kohner and Stephanie Griffin, the latter as a high-strung lass with a quick temper. Nick Adams and Tommy Rettig do fine in their roles and round out the survival party. The cinematography and music are top notch.

Thankfully, this western is a bit different and a bit more to offer...

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 27 October 2009]

This film begins with Richard Widmark being chased by a posse. In the process, Widmark kills several of the deputies until he is ultimately captured. The sheriff (along with Widmark) soon meets up with a wagon train and tags along with them until he can get his prisoner back to town for a proper hanging. As for why Widmark did all these nasty murders, he is supposedly part Comanche (he sure doesn't look it--that's because he was a white orphan raised by the tribe) and has a total disregard for society--and somehow this entitles him to kill with abandon.

Problems soon develop with the settlers. They are devout people and can't stand the way the sheriff takes pleasure in tormenting Widmark (who is now handcuffed to a wagon wheel). What happens next with Widmark and the sheriff is something you'll need to see for yourself.

Soon another parallel story begins as well. One of the ladies in the wagon train is angry because her father was previously married to an American-Indian and she has a half-sister as a result. There is obviously much hatred of the 'half-breed' sister and the racist feelings the white sister feels is a parallel to the story of Widmark. Occasionally this tension seems a bit overdone--especially since you'd think the angry white sister would have come to terms with her half-sister and the white settlers would get tired of using words like 'savage' so much. Subtle its message ain't and the one young lady in particular plays a character too unlikable and annoying to be real--the one and only real deficit in an otherwise good film.

Unfortunately for the wagon train, the land they eventually enter is Indian land. Soon, it appears that the Indians are angry about their land being invaded and it appears that all of the settlers' lives are about to be snuffed. At this point, the tables are turned and it's up to the cold-blooded killer, Widmark, to save the day--escorting the survivors to safety and teaching them to live off the land like natives.

By the way, as you watch Widmark chained to the wagon wheel and doing some stunts as well while connected to the wheel, you are impressed by how much he was willing to do for this role. Occasionally, you assume it's a stuntman doing some of the scenes but in many cases it is clearly Widmark being tossed about in this very uncomfortable manner. What a guy...and what a good film.

Overall, a very good film that is worth watching for its fine performance by Richard Widmark as well as an interesting and thought-provoking script. As I already said, the story isn't always subtle nor are a few of the characters, but it still is an earnest and enjoyable flick.

Romantic adventure western about the survivors of an Indian raid and subsequently surrounded by hundreds of revengeful Apaches

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 30 July 2019]

Good dramatic Western with nice acting and spectacular lanscapes from Red Rock Crossing , Sedona, Arizona . Pretty tough Western with great acting and masterfully made , it stars Richard Widmark as the primitive Commanche Todd whom the others believe to be a murderer but they are forced to accept him as a leader . Todd (Richard Widmark) is son of a white missionary whose family was killed and brought up by Comanches , he exacts vendetta on the four brothers who raped and murdered his Indian wife and children . Widmark deals with the more or less racist members of a wagon train and is left with the survivors on his hands after an Indian attack . They entrust the sheriff's (George Matthews) prisoner, who is captured and dragged to trial . As they must put their lives into the hands of the scout Comanche Todd . Todd who has charismatic qualities of leadership , as he could be defined as a two-fisted hero , as he emerges from the dust to stop vengeful Indians and later on , the young settlers atttempt to escape to freedom through rugged Indian territory. While Todd falls for a drippy colonist , (Felicia Farr) . Along the way hundreds of vengeful Apaches track them down, thirsting for blood . Nothing could stop the last wagon from coming through! .To save their lives, he'll have to risk his own.

This movie has a formidable combination of fine performances, intense drama and spectacular outdoors . Director Delmer Daves aims for psychological realism with a contemporary treatment and about an innocent and harassed man who becomes leader of a group of youthful people . The plot is plain and simple some settlers result to be ambushed and massacred by the Indians whose families were slaughtered by the whites, then a few survivors trust on an expert scout despite his wanted-for-murder status. A blending of talent actors with great leading players of whom Richard Widmark holds the best character as a brave frontiersman . The hothouse plot drives mercilessly forward with action , thrills , attacks and turns . The tale is strong one and the yarn is wonderfully located against a background of Arizona mountains . Very good main cast , standiing out Richard Widmark as the white man who has lived with the Comanches most of his life and is wanted for the murder of three men , he is the great hero dysplaying an inflexible sense of purpose , contriving some complexity about his role , including a certain riveting ambiguity . From his successful beginning with Kiss of death , Street with no name , Panic in the streets , Widmark has developed a brilliant and fruitful career , specially in Western genre that include : Broken Lance , The law and Jake Wade , Warlock , The Alamo , Two rode together , How the West was won , Cheyenne Autumn , Alvarez Kelly , The way west , Death of a gunfighter , Mr Horn , When the legends die and his last one : Texas Guns . Support cast is frankly well such as : Nick Adams , Susan Kohner , Tommy Rettig , George Mathews , Douglas Kennedy ,James Drury , Ken Clark , Carl Benton Reid, Timothy Carey , Bob Reeves , Abel Fernández , among others . The literate storyline sustains interest thanks to the relationships among the misfit characters and enhanced by cinemascope cinematography by cameraman Wilford Cline . Containing gorgeous outdoors exteriors from Oak Creek Canyon, Boynton Canyon,Sedona, Red Rock Crossing, Bell Rock, Sedona, Schnebly Hill, Arizona . Being well accompanied by a sensitive and moving musical score by Lionel Newman .

This red-blooded Western was compelling and stylishly directed by Delmer Daves and superbly filmed on location . Being made in the middle of his best period-all Western- . Daves was a fine , first-rate filmmaker who mingled moral or ethic analysis , documentary , lyrism , and large open spaces . Daves made some Western masterpieces , he was one of the greatest directors . As he was a western expert, including titles as ¨Broken arrow¨, the first pro-Indian western with James Stewart , ¨Drum beat¨ with Charles Bronson, ¨The last wagon¨ with Richard Widmark , ¨The badlanders¨ with Alan Ladd and Borgnine, ¨3:10 to Yuma¨ with Glenn Ford, ¨Cowboy¨ with Jack Lemmon, ¨The return of the Texan¨ with Dale Robertson , and ¨The hanging tree¨ with Gary Cooper , among others . Rating 7/10. Better than average

Widmark reigns

[xredgarnetx · 7/10 · 10 March 2007]

As with the same year's BACKLASH, star Richard Widmark puts his stamp of authority on what otherwise might have been a routine Western. He ends up guiding what's left of a wagon train family to safety from the Apaches. Most of the survivors are not exactly thrilled with this wild and wooly frontiersman leading them anywhere, and it is all Widmark can do to keep them from painting big red targets on each other's chests and backs for the Indians to shoot at. LASSIE's Tommy Rettig is the juvenile in the group. The female leads are great to look at in a 1956 kind of way. With the exception of Nick "Johnny Yuma" Adams, none of the rest of this cast is particularly well known, but veteran director Delmer Daves keeps them in line and believable as a group of frightened tenderfeet. James Drury, who would go on to fame as THE VIRGINIAN on TV, is in the film for bit.

The film that made a movie fan out of me

[jeffhill1 · 9 March 2002]

"The Last Wagon" is the very first movie I ever went nuts over; and I've been a movie fan ever since. I was nine and I didn't even want to go to the movies that Saturday night. But my parents wanted to see "Bus Stop" and they didn't want to get a baby sitter for me and my three year old brother, so they dragged us along. But they had made a mistake when reading the starting times of the films and when we got to the theater, "The Last Wagon", not "Bus Stop" was starting. From the moment Richard Widmark shot the first bad guy even before the opening credits and the enveloping overture, I was hooked on him, the western scenery, the action, the anthropological dramatization of Comanche vs. Apache tribal hostilities at the same time that all Native American cultures were being wiped out by encroaching white "civilization", and the enthralling background music. When the co-feature of "Bus Stop" concluded, I wanted to stay to see "The Last Wagon" again. My parents had to drag me out.

Save the children

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 16 July 2006]

The Last Wagon is a film with some good intentions and some very good moments, but it could have been a whole lot better.

A really brutal sheriff played by George Matthews brings a prisoner in to a small wagon train. By his manner he puts off a whole lot of the wagon train member. They start having some sympathy with prisoner Richard Widmark.

When some of the young people of the train go off and frolic in a midnight swim, they return and find the Apaches have massacred the train except for one survivor. Widmark survived by a fluke I won't reveal.

Widmark's a white man who lived with the Comanches and he's the only one who might insure the survival of the rest. Reluctantly they trust him and the adventure begins.

Widmark's is the only really developed character in The Last Wagon, the rest have some strange motivations and attitudes that are not fully explained. Still their are some exciting sequences in the film and it can be enjoyed on that level.

Beautifully filmed though little known

[nicholas.rhodes · 9/10 · 22 July 2007]

If you watch this film with care, you will see that every shot has been perfectly crafted. The deep blue skies and reddish rock colour go perfectly with the steely blue eyes and yellowish skin of Richard Widmark. Even the colour of his tunic blends in with the rest. The cameraman here must have been a real genius as every shot is perfect.Great attention seems to have been paid to the color of the sky, the position of the sun and even the shots in "contre-jour" come out perfectly - in short, a real FEAST for the eyes. This film has only recently been made available on DVD in the USA and is of course absent from Europe, though we have plenty of other, and many inferior quality Westerns available on DVD....this should have been one of the first to come out...but this was not to be the case. Plot-wise the film is quite enthralling, and it's interesting to note the change in attitude of the people with time towards Widmark, from suspicion and hate towards gratitude and love by the end. The other actors give reasonable performances but of course in this film, Widmark steals the show, just as he did in "No Way Out". The scenes with the Indians, smoke signals etc are awesome and very colourful. Also the soundtrack is very good, I even thought it was Dimitri Tiomkin who had composed it, but I was wrong. When I saw the film initially, I was fearing some ghastly sad ending, thinking that Widmark would inevitably come a cropper, but fortunately, love rules OK and all turns out right ! Phew ! This is a film that every true Western-lover should have on the shelves of his/her DVDthèque.

Prime Widmark

[seveb-25179 · 7/10 · 6 October 2018]

Richard Widmark, at the height of his career, plays a man who is past being conflicted, he has chosen his path and paid a heavy price. He begins the movie on the run from a posse of four and the audience don't know why, as we watch the action unfold he manages to kill three deputies before the sheriff finally gets the better on him. We learn he killed three men, brothers of the sheriff (at this point you might ask why doesn't the sheriff kill him outright, which they cover off by saying there is a reward of $1,000 for him alive but not dead, which is a little thin, but hey, it's a movie (Later you may wonder why the killing of the three deputies is never mentioned, as if perhaps killing deputies while resisting arrest doesn't count as murder, it's almost as if the three deputies are surrogates for the three brothers who are killed off screen before the movie begins, setting the posse on Widmarks trail). Widmark and his captor fall in with a wagon train of devout Christians heading west looking for a clean start after the horror of the civil war. They take exception to the sheriffs sadistic treatment of Widmark and much character development ensues before a scuffle in which Widmark emphatically disposes of the sheriff, and he is eventually allowed to reveal that the sheriff's no account brothers raped and killed his Indian wife. Most of the interaction between Widmark and the wagon train has been with the younger crowd, who are less set in their ideas, and now it is arranged for them all to be conveniently out of camp while the faceless horde of Indians massacre the adults. Somehow Widmark survives, despite being attached to a wagon wheel that was pushed over a cliff... and he is left to try and lead the small group of youthful survivors to safety against overwhelming odds, while educating them in the ways of racial tolerance along the way, in between well staged action scenes involving manageable numbers of hostiles. So the characters undertake both a physical and a metaphorical journey if you will. However the ending is pure Hollywood, explosives arrive to provide the great equaliser and a kindly judge sentences Widmark to spend the rest of his life in the custody of one of the nubile young women he has saved. Presumably they go off to live happily ever after (with her little brother) in Widmarks wigwam (although I think he had another term for the Indian tent dwelling). The scenery is magnificent and our perspective of it is enhanced by the fact that much of the movie is set half way up the side of the mountainous valley where the action is set. The Indians are used as a faceless plot device representing danger, however their historical plight is also well represented and advocated by Widmark, the white man who has lived long among them.

One the most exciting Westerns!

[Nazi_Fighter_David · 9/10 · 25 July 1999]

After he is tracked, caught and chained to a wagon train for killing, in cold blood, three brothers in revenge for the murder of three people closest to him, his wife and his two boys, Comanche Todd (Richard Widmark), leads a wagon to safety through Apache country...

It is an intense drama because Col. Normand's train was massacred by the savages and six young survivors were left on his hands, putting their trust in a renegade murderer to bring them out of the wilderness…

Delmer Daves tries to paint the West as a perfect artist proving himself as a talented director of the Western movies... As in "Broken Arrow," "Drum Beat," "3:l0 to Yuma," and "The Hanging Tree," this great director gives us, in his exciting Western, a study of several characters as individuals and as representatives of virtues, vices, and other abstract qualities...

Richard Widmark gives a great performance as a man who took the Comanche law to avenge his people… For him there was no "white man's law" for hundreds of miles!

Felicia Farr gives a sweet performance as the girl in love... For her Widmark could have saved himself… He could have gone and she urged him to go…

Susan Kohner tells her sister Valinda (Stephanie Griffin) that she acts so clean but she thinks so dirty… And when she says "Indian-lover" and she makes it sound so filthy…

Tommy Rettig—a lot more man than a boy— is the most effective member of the cast, sincere in his emotional feelings and highly amusing...

Nick Adams saw those falls this morning but refuses to notice that the kid could get swept over them…

George Mathews plays Sheriff Bull Harper with a killer he's bringing to justice… He explained to the Christians 'not to be fooled by the color of his eyes and his skin. He may be white, but inside he's all Comanche.'

Col. William Normand (Douglas Kennedy) asks the Sheriff to secure the prisoner but to stop his brutality…

Filmed in Technicolor and CinemaScope, the picture has plenty of action, good exterior photography including splendid picturesque shots of the "Canyon of death", the rocks, plains and rivers...

Surrounded by Hostile Apaches and Trying to Survive

[Uriah43 · 6/10 · 23 September 2020]

This film begins with a cowboy being shot and killed at long range by a man sitting on a ledge with a high-powered rifle. He then proceeds to kill another man with that same rifle and then after running out of ammunition kills yet another one with his knife before being held at gunpoint and taken prisoner. As it turns out, the person being held at gunpoint goes by the name of "Comanche Todd" (Richard Widmark) and the man who has taken him prisoner is named "Sheriff Bull Harper" (George Mathews). The three people just killed were the sheriff's brothers. That being said, Sheriff Harper does not treat Comanche Todd very nicely from this point on and this abusive conduct continues even after they subsequently join a wagon train carrying Christian families headed in the same direction. The problem is that not only is Comanche Todd quite determined to escape but they have also wandered into hostile Apache territory and that poses a greater danger than any of them realize. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a pretty good Western which also contained an easily recognizable anti-racism message throughout. Be that as it may, it had some good action scenes and decent acting performances by all concerned and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

Widmark was Attached To A Wagon Wheel !

[whpratt1 · 10/10 · 13 February 2005]

It was great viewing this 1956 film and enjoying the great acting of a very young Richard Widmark,(Comanchi Todd), "Garden of Evil",'54, where he plays a very well experienced man who can deal with almost any situation and understands the Native Americans like a book. The film has great photography through out the entire picture and brings you back to the Old West and the troubles that men and women had to face in the wilderness. Susan Kohner,(Jolie Normand), gave a great supporting role along with Nick Adams,(Ridge), both these characters had their own feels toward Comanchi Todd and some doubted if he was man enough to get them out of many death threatening situations. Comanchi Todd had his problems with a Wagon Wheel and I thought he was never going to get himself away from its burden of weight. If you are a fan of Richard Widmark, you will greatly enjoy this film which he made into a great Western Classic.

at least the girls were good looking

[RanchoTuVu · 6/10 · 3 March 2012]

A half-breed (Richard Widmark) wanted for multiple murders is hunted down and captured by a vicious sheriff (George Matthews) who, as he's dragging him back to civilization to be tried and then hung, coincidentally meets up with a wagon train of devout Christians. The situation as they join the train is the best part of the film, as Richard Widmark as the half-breed being convincingly mistreated by the sheriff (Matthews is pretty believable) wins the sympathy of a sizable proportion of those in the wagon train, which includes attractive Felicia Farr, Stephanie Griffin and Susan Kohner. The opposing views of justice, Christian piety, humane treatment etc... are well enough done, and the action builds fairly well with Widmark being chained to a wagon wheel, who manages to get one hand free enough to kill Matthews by skilfully throwing a hatchet at him. The culmination of this weird setting is when the young women accompany Nick Adams on a night time skinny-dipping outing. That, unfortunately is the high point of the film, for when they return they find that everyone in the train has been killed by Apaches except Widmark who somehow escapes even though he's still chained to the wagon wheel. The rest of the film is Widmark, half-breed, who's lived with Commanches for most of his life, now saving the young and attractive females along with Nick Adams and Tommy Rettig as he leads them to a town, where he faces a trial that is one of the more inane court scenes you are likely ever to see.

Wagon Wealds

[writers_reign · 5/10 · 27 October 2008]

Alas, this is another victim of over hype. It was shown as part of the London Film Festival and the brochure talked a great game. Any film with Richard Widmark is, by definition, never a total loss but even actors of his calibre can't work miracles. Likewise helmer Delmer Daves has some fine credits yet somehow these two A-listers managed to concoct something ho-hum. It was probably daring at the time (1956) to have Widmark shoot a man in the back in the very first scene - by this time Widmark had graduated from the psychopathic killers (Kiss Of Death, No Way Out) that had made his name to four-square heroes so we know there has to be a damn good reason for what he did. There is, but we have to wait til the final reel which sees Comanche Todd (Widmark) on trial for murder to discover that three brothers raped his Comanche wife then killed her and his two sons. For his trouble in the opening scene Widmark is 'captured' by brutal 'sheriff' Bull Harper (George Matthews) and winds up tied to a wagon wheel, part of a wagon train of pioneers heading West, yet is still able to bury an axe in Harper's head. When a group of the younger people sneak off for a midnight swim they return to find that Apaches have killed everyone except Widmark who is halfway down a cliff still tied to the wagon. There's really only one way for the story to go from here; Widmark must lead the survivors to safety through Apache territory and they are evenly divided between those who like him and those who hate him. Given that it's a 'journey' movie everyone learns something about themselves. It's watchable because it revolves around Widmark but there isn't half as much chemistry as there should be between him and leading lady Felicia Farr (on the other hand that was the year she married Jack Lemmon so maybe she had other things on her mind) and of the three prominent females Susan Kohner walks away with the acting honours.

A renegade half-Indian saves the day in the Old West.

[paulmoran99 · 9 August 2005]

The Last Wagon is not in the Premier League of great westerns; but it should be. Delmer Davis has fashioned an exciting, pacey film, which has all the finest ingredients of the American West.The story is never less than interesting and absorbing,and sometimes superlative. Richard Widmark plays Commanche Todd perfectly, displaying ruthlessness, kindness, charm and craggy reliability, in equal measure.The Widmark easy grin trademark is evident, which only he can switch on, lending light relief to a grim story.

But for me the film is notable for a love scene that compares easily with that of the famous train meeting between Cary Grant and Eve Marie Saint in North by Northwest. Felicia Farr as Jenny, and Todd, fetch up in the rocks of the wild prairie, and Todd makes his move. Then follows a curiously compelling verbal exchange that is achingly romantic,full of blossoming love and yearning, and charged with heady excitement.You can almost hear Farr's rapid heart beating. For one brief moment Felica Farr makes herself the most desirable women on the planet.When the kiss comes it makes your heart sigh. Then it's back to the action, and the film pulses along to a satisfying conclusion. But it will be Farr's breathlessness, sensuality and desirability that lingers in the mind.There have been countless Screen Goddess's;but only a few like Felicia Farr and Eve Marie Saint, have been able to effortlessly radiate true sex appeal

Generic but interesting.

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 18 May 2009]

Richard Widmark is Comanche Todd, captured by a brutal sheriff. The two stumble upon a few covered wagons with mostly women and children. Apaches attack and slaughter all the passengers except Widmark and a handful of women and kids, including Felicia Farr, Susan Kohner, and Nick Adams. Widmark, freed of his manacles, leads the others to freedom through Apache country.

Nothing much new here in the way of plot. Widmark represents nature. He wears a buckskin outfit and moccasins. He was raised by Indians, as so many other Western characters have been, from "Hombre" to "Hondo." He's stoic, knows nature, brims with common sense, and is tough as hell.

Farr and the rest represent culture. They speak elegantly, observe civilized customs, and are stupid. But they don't have to worry about survival in the wild as long as Widmark is around to teach them the skills required by adaptation to a hostile environment.

As a matter of fact, once freed of his shackles, Widmark doesn't sound much like an Indian. He sounds more like the sergeant leading the lost patrol through the wilderness. He snaps out orders and helps them shed their winsome civilian ways, as a Widmark character put it in another movie.

No, Widmark doesn't sound much like an Indian. He talks too much for one thing. If the people of the Circum-Mediterranean -- the Greeks, Jews, and Arabs -- are operatic in their speech and body language, the Plains Indians and those of the American Southwest are the opposite.

Widmark doesn't look the part, somehow, either, although I don't know that anyone could be convincing in the role. Felicia Farr, his romantic interest, is an attractive women who looks and sounds as if she'd have been far more at home in the Russian Tea Room than on horseback. This weakness in casting doesn't seem remarkable since no one else has more than modest acting talent either.

Yet it's an engaging movie. We know from the outset that Widmark is fundamentally good. The passengers he adopts are varied, as they must be in such a story. There is the dumb, callow braggart Nick Adams. There is the humane and loving Farr. There is the half-Navaho Susan Kohner who must rediscover the pride in her heritage. There is the Indian-hating Stephanie Griffin who grows up quickly.

When Widmark is finally brought to trial before General Howard, he presents a defense full of sophistry, but the people he's saved testify to his self-sacrificial deeds and the general lets him off with a light sentence, marriage to Farr.

The photography of Oak Creek Canyon and the environs of Sedona, Arizona, are outstanding. You can almost smell the Juniper.

The enemies here, aside from civilization itself, are the Apaches. They were tough customers historically. They deboned their captives beginning with the distal phalanx of one of the fingers. I've only known one Apache personally. He and I managed to come by the ingredients for a soup of fish heads and rice on the waterfront in Juneau. The meal turned out to be something of a mess because he was a little drunk when he made it, but I didn't mind because I was too.

Good western

[neil-476 · 7/10 · 23 March 2015]

Arrested for killing the men who murdered his wife and sons, "Comanche" Todd survives being chained to a wagon wheel when Apache ambush the wagon train leaving only 6 young people as well as Todd: it falls to him to lead them to safety through hostile territory.

Richard Widmark has a meaty action hero leading role as Todd in this 1956 western. The other characters are an interesting bunch, with Nick Adams in the thankless role of aggressive ass, Tommy Rettig as substitute son, and Felicia Farr as tasty young thing who could easily adapt to frontier wife.

The action is good, the music is typical western fare, and the scenery is wonderful. This is a very traditional western, but a good one.

Eye candy, but not much more

[HotToastyRag · 6/10 · 29 September 2022]

I have a sentimental attachment to The Last Wagon that has absolutely nothing to do with the movie. Once, when I was bedridden with a terrible cold, my mom sent me a picture of Richard Widmark to cheer me up. A couple of years later, when I watched The Last Wagon, a particular scene about twenty minutes before the end looked familiar. It was the screenshot she'd sent me when I was sick! Ladies, vitamin C's got nothing on a Technicolor photo of Richard Widmark's blue eyes and crooked smile.

The actual movie isn't the best of his I've seen, nor is it the best western, but I do recommend at least one viewing since he looks so cute. He plays a ruthless killer the cavalry has finally captured, after years of choosing to live with Indians. They catch him and drag him alongside a wagon train, and when they beat him mercilessly, some of the passengers object. He's still a human being, they argue, and shouldn't be treated like a rabid dog. Among them, Felicia Farr (the future Mrs. Jack Lemmon) takes particular interest - why wouldn't she? He's a doll!

In the supporting cast, you'll see Susan Kohner, Nick Adams, Tommy Rettig, Carl Benton Reid, and George Matthews. But let's face it, you won't really be renting it to see those faces. You'll be renting it for Dick, to see him get rehabilitated, fall in love, and hopefully save the wagon train when they run into trouble (which we all know will happen, otherwise it would be a pretty boring movie). If you go into it with only those expectations, you'll be very entertained.

He'll be safe. The first time he don't look safe, he'll get dead.

[hitchcockthelegend · 8/10 · 8 May 2009]

We open with a pursuit of a man across Canyon Of Death {Oak Creek Canyon}, the man being pursued is Comanche Todd. Todd is a white man with Comanche blood coursing thru his veins, he's also a wanted man, wanted for the murder of three men. After his capture by Sheriff Bull Harper, Todd and his captor run into a wagon train of Christian settlers who suffer an attack by the Apache. Severely depleted and ill equipped to deal with the terrain and threat of further attacks, the remaining settlers must put their trust in Todd to hopefully steer them all to safety.

The Last Wagon is one in a long line of Westerns that feature a similar plot, but this Delmer Daves {Dark Passage & 3:10 to Yuma} picture is a touch above many of the others due to having a few things in its favour. Primarily the picture's major draw card is the performance of Richard Widmark as Todd. In what could have been a by the numbers character, Widmark fills the role out with a sort of resentful angst. Resentful and angry angst that is coated with delicate flecks of romanticism! With the romantic plot strand here being no hindrance at all. In fact the romance here with Felicia Farr's {delightful performance} Jenny is sexy and mixes well with the dramatic core of The Last Wagon's being. As a character study of a group of people under duress, Daves and his co writer, James Edward Grant, have excelled and broken away from maudlin tendencies so rife in films of this ilk. Virtues and vices come under the microscope, as does the art of being humanitarian, regardless of circumstance and being armed with basic facts or foolishly acting on hearsay.

Also containing some beautiful location work at the afore mentioned Oak Creek Canyon, Arizona {filmed in Cinemascope and Technicolor}, it's most certainly looking like a film that has apparently been forgotten outside of the Widmark and Western purists. And that's a damn shame, because although the ending doesn't quite sit right with all that has gone before it, it's a fine Western picture just begging to be discovered by any prospective newcomers to an often derided genre. 8/10

Delmer Daves rides again!

[JohnHowardReid · 7/10 · 19 June 2017]

Copyright 1956 by 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. New York opening at the Globe: 21 September 1956. U.S. release: September 1956. U.K. release: November 1956. Australian release: 15 November 1956. Sydney opening at the Plaza. 99 minutes.

SYNOPSIS: Set in the Arizona territory in 1875, the story tells what happens to a small group of people, mostly teenagers, who, quite by accident, survive an Apache attack on their wagon train and endure terrible hardships in the long trek to safety.

NOTES: Fox's 62nd CinemaScope feature. Locations in Sedona, Arizona.

COMMENT: This rugged western, filmed against picturesque backdrops in Northern Arizona, was not highly regarded in its day due to its somewhat protracted and overlong story-line, as well as its too verbose and even pretentious moralizing. Widmark's over-intense acting did not help either. I'm sure the movie would go over much better with a modern audience who will tolerate any amount of pretension, garrulousness and thespic hamminess, so long as these stretches of tedium are occasionally enlivened by bouts of blazing action.

I'm amazed that Fox have not theatrically re-issued "The Last Wagon". I'm sure that admirers of director Delmer Daves ("Broken Arrow", "Jubal", "3:10 to Yuma", "Cowboy") would welcome the opportunity to re-assess this one.

One of the better Westerns of the 50s

[Wuchakk · 8/10 · 19 August 2011]

Richard Widmark stars as Comanche Todd, a white man raised by Comanches and under arrest for murder. Deep in hostile Apache territory in 1873 he soon finds himself the leader of a small group of youths from a wagon train. Will they make it out alive? And, even if they do, can Todd escape the sentence of death-by-hanging?

Shot on location in Sedona, Arizona, at the mouth of Oak Creek Canyon, this is a gorgeous-looking Western. Not only is the plot engaging, the characters, cast and practically everything else are well done. The film successfully takes you back to the late 1800s and gives a good glimpse of what it must have been like to travel out West during that time.

Felicia Farr and Susan Kohner stand out in the supporting cast; both beautiful in different ways. Each youth has his/her issues and grows much as a result of their experiences with Comanche Todd in the dire situation. For instance, Susan (Jolie) is ashamed that she's half-Indian but Todd teaches her to be proud of who and what she is. Others hate Todd for being an "injun lover" but later see the error of their ways. Todd himself is lost in in a fog of bitterness & revenge but a new prospect is thrown in his lap. Can he get over his disillusionment to see the blessing in his current situation? This is just a taste of the character arcs in the story.

Christianity and Christians are actually portrayed in a positive light. Yet so are the beliefs/practices of the AmerIndians. The film does a good job of taking the middle road with the settlers and the Indians. Not to mention, the Indians are portrayed realistically, unlike some 50's Westerns where you just roll your eyes at their silly depiction.

Aside from the dated score (which isn't bad, just dated), the negative I can cite would be some quaintness. But the film makes up for it with a quality end-commentary on the nature of universal justice.

The film runs 1 hour, 39 minutes.

GRADE: A-

Preachy Western with Beautiful Cinematography

[verbusen · 6/10 · 18 September 2019]

I partially enjoyed this Western, it seemed very modern for 1956. Widmark was a firm believer in American social justice and I can see it here to the point that it is preachy. Great photography helps this film a great deal. I'm sure there are some Hollywood film sets here, but it all looks very real. I was especially interested in seeing Nick Adams since he died a tragic young death and knew James Dean, Elvis and others. Here Adams plays a young man, he's entertaining for the role but its nothing special. I give it a 6 because it is overtly preachy about white racism and also because of the damage Widmark's character got in the film, despite his hair staying perfect, seemed silly. Honestly, the guy was killed at least twice in real life if that happened to him.

An Under-appreciated Western Gem

[gmcgibney · 9/10 · 30 November 2005]

Though he never achieved the status of John Ford, Delmer Daves was responsible for elevating many average scripts into films that became more than the sum of their parts (Dark Passage, 3:10 To Yuma). This is a film I can first recall seeing on the late show in my early teens with my nine-year-old brother. Thirty years later we still call each other when we see it listed in the TV guide.

In Commanche Todd Richard Widmark gives us one of his most likable and unforgettable characters in what could easily have become a throwaway performance in a "B" movie. The supporting cast is excellent especially Felicia Farr as Jenny. She took what could have been a potentially thankless role and turns Jenny into a strong and extremely desirable woman. Despite the sappy Hollywood ending that is somewhat at odds with the tone of the rest of the film this is a film that holds up after almost fifty years.

Not your average western

[clevurguy · 5/10 · 6 September 2021]

A solid western with a good story, and fantastic acting. Good twists and turns throughout with beautiful sceneary. Not a big fan of westerns normally, but appreciated this one. I give it 5/10 wagon wheels..

Pretty good movie until the end

[Hang_All_Drunkdrivers · 16 September 2004]

Widmark plays the anti-hero who comes to the aid of teenagers who survived an Indian attack. As usual widmark is great and i esp loved the hateful sheriff played by george matthews who is gonna turn criminal widmark in for the reward . He treats widdy just awful and eventually widmark cleaves him open with a hatchet!!! You don't get to see the hatchet land, but it's still a great scene cause the slimeball had it comin'. Three teenage girls in the film are very attractive and the scenery is spectacular. I won't tell the ending of course, but lets just say it's pretty sappy and didn't jibe with the rest of the movie which was quite cynical. All in all, surprisingly good for a 50 year old western. I'll give it a B+.