Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Sidney Poitier is Buck, a black wagonmaster who guides former slaves West to a land of hope — and land they can own — in Kansas.

That makes him public enemy number one for former Rebels who would like to restore the old way of life back in Louisiana.

Those whites include a vicious killer named Deshay (Cameron Mitchell), who leads a band of night riders

They do their best to halt the western migration of former slaves, attacking their wagon trains, stealing their money and killing their stock in an effort to force them give up their journey.

Fleeing Deshay and the night riders, Buck comes across Preacher (Harry Belafonte) — sometime religious, sometimes a con man — and “borrows” his horse.

Preacher wants that horse back.

But instead the two wind up in an uneasy alliance that eventually becomes a partnership, striking back at their adversaries and teaming up in an effort to guide a wagon train of former slaves to safety.

Sidney Poitier as Buck, hoping to guide former slaves safely to Kansas in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Harry Belafonte as Preacher, finding a cause more meaningful than his con in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Review:

Joseph Sargent was the original director, but Poitier took over the film when he became dissatisfied with the direction it was taking. Hence this became the first of nine films he would direct.

That change might be responsible for the film’s uneven feel, from serious to light-hearted once Belafonte’s character shows up back to deadly serious once he and Poitier decide to even the score with Deshaw, then rob a bank to finance the wagon train’s trip West.

And while the story of former slaves heading West for new opportunity is certainly unique, the film’s plausibility seems strained when Indians repeatedly come to their aid.

Ruby Dee plays Buck’s wife, yearning for a new life somewhere far away from the South she’s grown to loathe. Julie Robinson, who plays the Indian Chief’s squaw was married to Belafonte at the time.

Ruby Dee as Ruth lets buck know how dangerous she considers life in Kansas in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Cameron Mitchell as Deshay, coming face to face with the wagon master he’s been seeking in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Directed by:
Sidney Poitier
and Joseph Sargent

Cast:
Sidney Poitier … Buck
Harry Belafonte … Preacher
Ruby Dee … Ruth
Cameron Mitchell … Deshay
Denny Miller … Floyd
Nita Talbot … Madam Esther
John Kelly … Sheriff
Julie Robinson … Sinsie
Jose Carlos Ruiz … Indian brave
James McEachin … Kingston
Clarence Muse … Cudjo
Lynn Hamilton … Sarah
Doug Johnson … Sam
Errol John … Joshua

Runtime: 102 min.

John Kelly as the sheriff on the trail of two bank robbers in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Denny Miller as Floyd, stumbling across a grisly scene in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Memorable lines:

Buck: “Which way you ridin’, preacher?”
Preacher: “Well, I ain’t exactly settled my mind yet.”
Buck: “Well, you got bout three possibilities: North, South or East.”
Preacher: “What happened to West?”
Buck: “We’re goin’ West.”

Preacher, after he’s used his oversized Bible as a shield while gunning down on of Deshay’s men: “I put my faith in the good book.”

Ruth to Buck: “I ain’t gonna live in this land no more, you hear me? The war ain’t changed nothin’ or nobody. It’s like a poison in the ground. They ain’t gonna give us nothin’. Not no 40 acres and not no mule. And not freedom neither. It’s like a poison soaked into the ground.”

Buck, robbing the Overland office: “Where’s that paper money?”
Overland mail teller: “I told you. At the bank. I sent it over there.”
Buck to Preacher: “What you think (about robbing the bank)?”
Preacher: “What the hell? Otherwise, we done wasted the whole morning?”

Julie Robinson as Sinsie, negotiating on behalf of her chief (Jose Carlos Ruiz) in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Nita Talbot as Madam Esther, caught in the middle of a bank robbery in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Harry Belafonte as Preacher, about to be relieved of his horse in Buck and the Preacher (1972)

Sidney Poitier as Buck, temporary turned bank robber in Buck and the Preacher (1972)