Jesse Patt
10/27/24
Native American History
Film Review Project
For my Film Review Project, I will be covering the 1964 film Cheyenne Autumn, directed by John Ford, which explores the 1878-1879 exodus of Northern Cheyenne people, who were attempting to return to their original homeland in Yellowstone from the Oklahoma reservation they were placed on together with the Southern Cheyenne. They relied on other countries such as Kansas, but changed their minds upon finding white settlers, as seen on the film, and news of their rebellion reached as far as Washington D.C. I would only give the movie three stars, because while it does accurately address the struggles of the Cheyenne journey and turns the typical Westerns of the time on their head by focusing on the Native perspective, it does get a bit unrealistic at times and does not show the true effects of the journey after the Cheyenne returned to their old home. This includes an odd shift to a comedic focus that seems inappropriate to a serious movie such as this one.
In general, the film does try its best to retain a coherent and consistent narrative. The film doesn’t only focus on the Cheyenne people, but has a split focus that remains mostly intact, except for a brief detour to Dodge City to showcase James Stewart’s appearance as Wyatt Earp and also portrays the white Americans in a clueless manner, unusual for Westerns, especially in the 1960s. The people seen in the film also do not speak English that often, and aside from brief interaction with white characters such as their ally, a schoolteacher named Deborah Wright, speak their own native languages. The indigenous people are shown at their reservation eager to leave with help from a military man named Thomas Archer, but find their journey was delayed. Not wanting this to deter them, they end up taking their children out of school and making their way back towards their old home, shocking the troops that were supposed to help them. They make their way, but Archer and his men get on their tail and a battle breaks out. The battle becomes widespread and the news reaches D.C., where they are even referred to as primitive and made to look just like opponents, when in fact both sides had previously been allies. The indigenous people are still being hunted, but they seek refuge in Dodge City, where they became wanted and the townspeople form a dislike towards them, so a couple of local men try to set them straight by sending them the wrong way. After several months, the Natives become tired out and worn down, and some go to the barracks, while others go on. They are found by Archer, who finds that there is still someone who wishes for the Natives to end their journey, Wessels, so he goes to D.C. and begs for their freedom. Wessels ends up being arrested, and the indigenous people are given a treaty by Archer that allows them to return home, along with Deborah, although things aren’t completely peaceful, especially as there have been various casualties and conflict on both sides throughout the film.
The film is significant because it represents a major turning point in the Western film genre, showcasing Native American characters who are on professional terms with certain white individuals, rather than being portrayed as uncivilized and tools of war. While fights occur in the film, they are mostly historically accurate depictions and the film does still acknowledge that it takes place in the 1870s, but it shows that not every meeting between a white person and an indigenous person in the West was violent. Though the film wasn’t quite historically accurate and appeared to be somewhat of an apology by director John Ford to Native Americans, it seems mostly focused on having a happy ending. Such a happy ending isn’t really the case in real life, as a Northern Cheyenne reservation was established in Montana, but indigenous people have continued to face various forms of oppression and loss of their voices in the years since, even from reservations. Ford’s earlier work was about things that included the savagery of Native Americans, but it becomes difficult to take his apology fully by today’s standards, due to his casting of Mexican/Navajo people in the roles. Notably, the Navajo people improvised dialogue in a mocking way, although this was left unnoticed by the filmmakers, which also included Bernard Smith, a literary editor, as a producer in addition to Ford. The film faced its share of troubles in production, as the scenes with visiting Dodge City were constantly edited to make it less comical, as it felt strange in a serious movie. It was filmed by William Clothier, mostly at the Monument Valley Tribal Park. It might be based on true events and subverts a genre stereotype while keeping in references to it, but still remains a product of its time, especially with the state of the ending and its future implications, which could imply something akin to the white savior complex due to Deborah’s presence, though in this case, she is helping the Natives do what they want to do. The film is also based on a book, but is said by various sources to diverge from it in many respects, which explains the controversial editing decisions. Overall, despite troubled production and several weaknesses with the comical aspect and inaccurate nature of the ending, Cheyenne Autumn remains a significant film because of its focus on a dual narrative where Native Americans and white Americans are both portrayed as equally deserving of screentime, without resorting to stereotypes. It shows a peace that displays John Ford’s acknowledgement that not everyone shares the same views. Due to the power of this message, it becomes clear that the film succeeded in its overall mission, and even if the casting isn’t accurate and there are detours, it still holds up today.