Only the Valiant *** (1951, Gregory Peck, Ward Bond, Gig Young, Lon Chaney Jr, Barbara Payton, Neville Brand, Jeff Corey, Warner Anderson, Steve Brodie) – Classic Movie Review 6952

‘THEY WERE SIX AND THEY FOUGHT LIKE SIX HUNDRED!’ Director Gordon Douglas’s 1950 Western is based on the 1943 novel by Charles Marquis Warren and is basically a dirty-half-dozen, with plenty of manly appeal.

Gregory Peck stars as cavalry Captain Richard Lance, the brave but misunderstood soldier who is wrongly blamed by his men and girlfriend for an Indian massacre and the death of popular officer Lieutenant William Holloway (Gig Young).

When the Apache go on the warpath, led by hostile chief Tucsos (Michael Ansara), Lance redeems his reputation when he selects six unlikely misfit men for a vital mission to go to a nearby abandoned army fort to defend a mountain pass against the expected Indian assault and defends his cavalry stockade from the rampaging Native Americans with only the handful of men. It also stars Ward Bond as alcoholic Corporal Timothy Gilchrist, Lon Chaney Jr as Armenian Trooper Kebussyan (known as ‘the Ay-rab’), Barbara Payton as the romantic interest Cathy Eversham, Neville Brand, Jeff Corey, Warner Anderson, and Steve Brodie.

A fairly weak and rather clichéd Western story is given considerable punch by the decent screenplay, the on-form star and the rest of the highly professional cast, plus director Douglas’s sturdy handling. And, despite the low budget, there is a highly professional production by James Cagney’s younger brother William, with slick work on camera by cinematographer Lionel Lindon and production designs by Wiard Ihnen, so it looks striking in black and white, and there is a grand score by Franz Waxman to help it along too.

Also in the cast are Dan Riss, Terry Kilburn, Herbert Heyes, Art Baker, Hugh Sanders, Michael Ansara, Nana Bryant and John Doucette.

Only the Valiant is directed by Gordon Douglas, runs 105 minutes, is a William Cagney Productions production, is released by Warner Bros, is written by Edmund H North and Harry Brown, is shot in black and white Lionel Lindon, is produced by William Cagney, is scored by Franz Waxman, and is designed by Wiard Ihnen.

An unhappy but valiant Peck, loaned out under contract to David O Selznick, earned only $60,000 for the film but Selznick got $150,000. They sold the film on Peck’s name, paid him only $60,000, and the film went on to take $2 million in US rentals! Probably because of this, Peck considered the film a low point of his career.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 6952

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