Someone is offering a bounty on Coyotero scalps. Figuring any old Indian scalp will do, former cavalryman Frank Carter (Kent Taylor) and his three friends attack a Shoshone camp in what becomes known as the Squaw River Massacre.
These would be the same Shoshone who had been promised that peace with the whites would last “until the moon rises no more in the sky,” according to Chief Black Feather. So he gives the whites until “the corn reaches his chin” to bring Carter and company to justice.
The Army, fearing an all-out Indian war, sends Capt. Ed Trask (Willard Parker) into the mountains along to capture Carter.
Well, capturing him proves pretty easy. Getting him back alive, with the Shoshone out for his scalp and his three buddies determined to get their share of the scalp money, might prove more difficult.
Along the way, Trask rescues pretty Sally Medford (Joyce Meadows) from a burning wagon.
At first, she isn’t sure who’s more brutal — Trask or Carter. But she knows this: Her grandfather is dead, and she shares Carter’s hatred for Indians.
Review:
As low-budget as its abbreviated runtime would suggest. The only unique feature might be its mountain setting. Taylor and Parker seem to roll down an entire mountain during one fight sequence.
Among the silliness that’s tough to overlook, Trask and Carter find Sally in a burning wagon, uninjured and unravaged. Later, after Carter and his men have beaten Trask, they decide he can’t be left alive. So they fire a rifle at him, from long distance. He’s supposedly wounded, but shows no sign of it through the rest of the film.
Felix Locher, who plays aging Chief Black Feather in an early scene, didn’t begin acting until he was 73 years old and was 78 when this film was released. He was the son of actor Jon Hall, who appeared in a number of Westerns in the 1940s.
Director:
Maury Dexter
Cast:
Willard Parker … Capt. Ed Trask
Joyce Meadows … Sally Medford
Kent Taylor … Frank Carter
Ron Soble … Leach
William Mims … Jake
Alberto Monte … Carlos
Russ Bender … Col. Stanton
Felix Locher … Black Feather
Dave DePaul … Buffalo Horn
Runtime: 61 min.
Memorable lines:
Jake: “The sheriff sees that I broke into this store. And I says, ‘Sheriff, I was just lookin’ for a pair of shoes.’ And he says, ‘Jake, if you ain’t careful, you’re gonna wind up on boot hill.’ And I says, ‘Sheriff, I already been up on boot hill, and I couldn’t find a pair that fit me.'”
Frank Carter: “Captain, we’ve been on the go since last night. If you have no regard for the prisoner, you might at least have some for the horses.”
Capt. Trask: “You know, for a man who has a reputation like yours for abusing his horses, you’ve become a good Samaritan. Alright, Carter, dismount.”
Carter follows directions.
Capt. Trask: “We’ll lead ’em.”
Frank Carter: “You’ll never convince me that these savages will respect any kind of peace treaty. They’ll only be peace when these savages are dumped into their own happy hunting ground.”
Black Feather, asking for justice for Indians Frank Carter and his men have scalped: “We wait till corn grows to chin. Then …” He makes a cutting motion across his throat.
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