mark.waltz Recently, I saw an Off Broadway production of the 1969 Tony nominated play "Indians", an analogy of what was going on at the time in the Vietnam War and the white man's involvement in the displacement of natives and the unkept promises by the government in protecting them. It is ironic that a week later that I pulled out this film from a box set of public domain westerns and found a plot line similar, although this incident took place some 30 years ago. But the basic story is still the same, one culture's inhumanity towards another, and one decent white man's efforts to right the wrong perpetuated by his own people. While the natives are presented fairly for a change for the most part, there's still the nagging feeling that the writers had to include a few savage references simply for shock value, and some of those moments are cringe worthy.This film starts off with President Abraham Lincoln creating a treaty with the Acoma tribe and the betrayal of that treaty after Lincoln's assassination. Chief Ted de Corsia vows vengeance, and Lew Ayres, an army officer who witnessed the treaty being agreed upon, decides to fight for the rights of the natives, even after de Corsia murders the colonel who stopped them from rightfully claiming what was theirs. But first, he must bring de Corsia and the others to justice, along with prejudiced judge Lloyd Corrigan. Walter Greaza and Raymond Burr represent the cruel white men whose ambition it seems was not only settling the land but destroying human beings they cruelly treated like savages. Certainly, the natives seek revenge, but it's not difficult to understand why they did what they felt they had to do. When they do, you can guarantee that those who feel their wrath won't get a painless death.It's nice to see a western where more than just one side is presented, even if much of it seems fictional. Hans Conreid, of all people, is Abraham Lincoln here, and is completely unrecognizable, no traces of Dr. T or his vast array of oddball characters. There are moments that will make you cringe at the cruelties of the white men, particularly when one of Ayres' men takes it upon himself to kill a young native boy right in front of his brother. This leads the surviving son of chief de Corsia to discover early in life the meantime if true hatred, intending to venge his brother's death just like his father would There's little unnecessary comedy relief here (even with the presence of Andy Devine who has one rather offensive quip), and the presence of Marilyn Maxwell as a traveling actress seems superfluous, even if she is accompanied by the lovable character actress Verna Felton. This is a nice attempt to present natives beyond the usual stereotypes even though it's obvious that important facts have been altered or changed to make this cinematic.

Byrdz ALWAYS check inherited VHS tapes with no specific labels to make sure that the whole film is there BEFORE starting to watch the movie.That being said ... I did enjoy the part of "New Mexico" that I got to see.Sure it was hokey and impossibly historically inaccurate ... Lincoln in New Mexico Territory just before the end of the Civil War and just before his assassination... come on now ! There were problems with the costuming of the Native-Americans as well as their casting BUT was a very low budget film and western makers were not known for being detail oriented in B-westerns.I did get to see Raymond Burr being dastardly and Andy Devine wise cracking much less than usual. Missed the singing in the 2nd half but did recognize Verna Felton so all was not all lost. Surprised to find out who was playing Lincoln. Did NOT catch that one. Lew Ayres very good despite being out of his usual element.The scenery = fantastic. Plot = better than some.Wish I'd seen how they managed to get down off'n that mesa though.

alexandre michel liberman (tmwest) As a young boy in 1952, I went to visit Acoma, a Native American village, near Albuquerque, New Mexico together with my parents and uncle. The scenery was so impressive that it remains alive in my mind , and I remember the houses where to reach the upper floor you had to go through an external ladder. So it was a deception to see this film where such a beautiful scenery is wasted. The DVD I purchased is in black and white, but I read in the IMDb it was made in Ansco Color. I wonder what happened. The story is interesting, about a truce made with the Chief Acoma, which is broken . Lew Ayres is an army captain on a mission to capture Acoma. Marylin Maxwell is Cherry, who joins them against all logic and even provides some musical numbers!!! She is not a bad actress, but here her character does not work. The script is good, but could have been brought to the screen in a much better way. Overall, frustrating, considering what it could have been.

mamamute The movie centers on a strong clear plot structure strongly defined in the beginning. The story progresses to a seige, where pure character takes over the plot as the main element that defines the fine quality of this movie. For some reason I did not know at the time, I loved this movie as a child. Later in theater I learned the quality aspects that New Mexico writers and actors used. I wish it was available in DVD or VHS.