A Western Hero

If our conjecture is correct, this is the first, or one of the first, Wild West moving picture photographs made by Messrs. Pathé. They have gone right into the current game as it is being played by so many moving picture makers: that is they have chosen a Western subject for camera treatment. To begin with, the picture is beautifully colored, indeed, so far as we may judge, the different colors are so natural and lifelike that even the long threatened photography in natural colors could hardly displace the Pathé method, as it is at present practiced by this eminent firm. The full story of the film shows some extremely good acting cast around a series of adventures in which the duplicity and cunning of American aboriginals forms the main theme. Of course, the Indians are defeated in their duplicity and everybody is made happy at the end of the picture. There appears, from inquiries that we have made, to be a very great demand amongst American audiences for Indian subjects, probably, therefore, on that account, this Pathé subject will be popular. It is a radical departure from the usual Pathé picture, and will, no doubt, be well appreciated out West, where fine comedy and tense drama of the European kind is hardly understood or appreciated yet awhile. – The Moving Picture World, July 3, 1909