White Feather **** (1955, Robert Wagner, Jeffrey Hunter, John Lund, Debra Paget, Eduard Franz, Noah Beery Jr, Hugh O’Brian) – Classic Movie Review 8794

Director Robert D Webb’s historical Western White Feather (1955) stars Robert Wagner as Josh Tanner, a youthful civilian surveyor for the army, who finds himself caught between greedy gold-diggers and the Cheyenne Indians who live on the land where the gold is said to be found in 1877 Wyoming.

John Lund is Colonel Lindsay, the US cavalry officer assigned on a peace mission to persuade the Native Americans to move peacefully to reservations. But then Josh Tanner (Wagner) and Cheyenne Indian squaw Appearing Day (Debra Paget), the chief’s daughter, fall in love, prompting impetuous braves Little Dog (Jeffrey Hunter) – the chief’s son who also falls for Appearing Day – and American Horse (Hugh O’Brian) to pick a battle with the US army. Josh Tanner (Wagner) finally helps to avert a massacre. Eduard Franz also stars as the Cheyenne Indian Chief Broken Hand.

Hunter, O’Brian, Paget and Franz don’t make the most convincing of Indians to be sure, but the good-spirited plot allows them to voice the worries of liberal America seemingly years ahead of its time, and this at a bad, right-wing time in American history in the mid-Fifties.

White Feather could have done with a little less earnestness and a trifle more action and less romance, but full credit to director Webb for creating a Western with a conscience and to cinematographer Ballard for creating such a beautiful looking movie, shot in Technicolor and CinemaScope, mostly on authentic locales. Filming took place at Fort Laramie National Historic Site, 965 Gray Rocks Road, Fort Laramie, Wyoming, and Durango, Mexico. Hugo Friedhofer’s score is also noteworthy.

Also in the cast are Noah Beery Jr, Virginia Leith, Emile Meyer, Milburn Stone and Iron Eyes Cody.

White Feather is directed by Robert D Webb, run 101 minutes, is made by Panoramic Productions, is released by 20th Century Fox, is written by Delmer Daves and Leo Townsend, based on a story by John Prebble, is shot in Technicolor and CinemaScope by Lucien Ballard, is produced by Robert L Jacks, is scored by Hugo Friedhofer, and is designed by Jack Martin Smith.

John Lund made his movie debut in To Each His Own (1946) and did well in A Foreign Affair (1948) and No Man of Her Own (1950), but by the end of 1951 his career was in decline. He said: ‘I look best from a great distance and in a bad light. I have a peculiar face, an odd walk and about as much sex appeal as a goat.’

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 8794

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