Gary Cole plays George Custer in this two-part, made-for-TV movie about his career as a post-Civil War Indian fighter.
He’s portrayed as a man who fears his fame and Civil War glory is slipping away, who’s frustrated by the fact that he’s no longer wearing a general’s star.
He’s anxious for any opportunity at glory, convinced of his ability to defeat any foe on the battlefield, if that foe will just stand and fight.
But he’s also a man with a knack for getting in trouble with his superiors and frequently in danger of losing the opportunity to lead the 7th Cavalry into battle.
The story is told through the eyes of two women, Custer’s wife (Rosanna Arquette) and an Indian girl named Kate Bighead, who saw Custer for the first time as a young girl, then later when he attacked her village at the Washita River.
The latter helps share the story of Crazy Horse and why Custer’s Last Stand became the Indian’s last stand as well.
Gary Cole as George Custer makes an ominous toast before riding into battle in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
Rosanna Arquette as Libby Custer talks to her husband about Indian women in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
Review:
The Custer story gets the TV miniseries treatment — a two-part film first aired on ABC — and the result is decidedly mixed.
On the plus side, it’s one of the more even-handled depictions of the story you’ll find. And the recreation of Custer’s Last Stand is probably the most accurate committed to film, depicting the likely chaos and desperation of the moment.
Unfortunately, Gary Cole doesn’t come close to matching the magnetism Errol Flynn brought to the role in “They Died With Their Boots On” or the fervor of Robert Shaw in “Custer of the West.”
Both of those films are more entertaining — if wildly inaccurate. That’s partly because this film is so committed to providing a history lesson about known facts that the ability to weave a compelling narrative suffers.
As for Cole’s performance as Custer … let’s just say you’re more likely to remember the performance of Michael Medeiros as the panicked Maj. Reno or David Strathairn, flouting his own mane of blonde locks, as a Capt. Benteen who considers himself morally superior to the man he’s forced to follow into battle.
The melodramatic handling of the deaths of Custer and Crazy Horse doesn’t help.
Michael Medeiros as Maj. Reno, firing at attacking Indians in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
David Strathairn as Capt. Benteen, pondering what to do about orders he’s received in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
Directed by:
Mike Robe
Cast:
Gary Cole … George Custer
Rosanna Arquette … Libby Custer
Stanley Anderson … Ulysses S. Grant
Edward Blatchford … Lt. Cooke
George Dickerson … Gen. Sherman
Rodney Grant … Crazy Horse
Tom O’Brien … Charlie Reynolds
Tery O’Quinn … Gen. Alfred Terry
David Strathairn … Capt. Benteen
Michael Medeiros … Maj. Reno
Tim Ransom … Tom Custer
Nick Ramus … Red Cloud
Dean Stockwell … Gen. Philip Sheridan
Sheldon Peters Wolfchild … Bloody Knife
Demina Becker … Young Kate Bighead
Kimberly Guerrero … Kate Bighead
Buffy Sainte-Marie … Kate Bighead narrator
Runtime: 187 min.
Rodney Grant as Crazy Horse, whose visions foretold the Battle of the Little Bighorn in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
Kimberly Guerrero as Kate Bighead, watching Cheyenne braves prepare for battle in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
Memorable lines:
Gen. Gibbons: “What happened here, Captain Benteen.”
Capt. Benteen: “Mistakes were made.”
George Custer: “Scattered. Give me a civilized war. An enemy I can find and beat. An enemy who fights by the rules.”
Libby, as George heads off to Washington: “Let me know what the women are wearing.”
George Custer: “I will study them carefully.”
Libby: “Don’t you dare.”
George Custer: “Does anyone knows what lies out there, beyond the cities and the newspapers? Does anyone know the thin line that separates the Indian from the soldier the way I do? I could be an Indian. I can find them!”
Benteen: “Custer’s luck. You should have realized by now, major, Custer’s problems never hold him down long. He’s planning his new book already, I’m sure. His next success: ‘My Lie on the Plains.'”
Maj. Reno: “You mean ‘My Life on the Plains.”
Libby: “Here’s to a short journey and a safe return.”
Custer: “Here’s to a (general’s) star. Or a coffin.”
Gary Cole as George Custer, determined to ride to glory one more time in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
Tim Ransom as Tom Custer, urging his brother to practice caution during the Rosebud campaign in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
Terry O’Quinn as Gen. Alfred Terry, reviewing plans for the upcoming Indian campaign with Custer in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
Stanley Anderson as Ulysses S. Grant, meeting with Sioux Chief Red Cloud in Son of the Morning Star (1991)
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