For the first two thirds of the running time, this is an unremarkable love story-cum-western, interspersed with some rather bloody scenes of action and death which are rather surprising for the time in which this film was released. The drama is slow-paced and takes a rather long time to unfold; most of the running time is taken up with characterisation between the two central protagonists. The first is Cresta, a woman (but definitely not a lady) with bad habits, a foul tongue, and a love of the Native American Indians, which is not shared by her companion, a young, jingoistic soldier by the name of Honus Gent. The two young actors taking the lead roles, Candice Bergen and Peter Strauss, put in strong roles and in part make the viewing experience worthwhile.Although the pacing is slow, the script is witty and offers some nice wordplay between the two leads as their initial hostility turns to friendship and eventually something more. Plus, Ralph Nelson makes great use of the untamed American landscape, which is nicely shot, and there's another oddball character performance from Donald Pleasence playing a gun trader. Then all of a sudden, the film's unforgettable climax changes track as it depicts the wholesale slaughter of an Indian village by the American troops; suddenly it becomes deadly serious and often hard to watch. The gore effects are horrific and in-your-face and at this point, the true carnage and bloodshed of warfare is portrayed with guts, unlike anything ever seen before by the viewing public at the time of release. Since then, advances in special effects have resulted in far gorier films, but few share the disturbing realism of this movie's climax, which itself is based on the true story of the Sand Creek Massacre by Colorado soldiers led by one Colonel Chivington. Not a great movie, but perhaps one to remember, and a story with a moral is always one worth watching.

Released in 1970 and directed by Ralph Nelson, "Soldier Blue" is a Western starring Peter Strauss and Candice Bergen as a soldier and Native sympathizer, the only two survivors of a cavalry group Massacred by the Cheyenne. As they travel together to get back to the soldier's unit he struggles with his affection for the woman and a revulsion for her anti-US government outlook. Then he sees the awful truth.This controversial Western showcases the atrocities of the US Army against Native Americans wherein the average US Cavalry solder is depicted as a shifty, droop-eyed, unwashed, stupid cracker idiot with flies buzzing around his head. The opening Indian attack is set in order to align the audience's sympathies with Honus (Strauss, the 'Soldier Blue' of the title), so that the viewer travels on the same journey as him, starting by regarding the Indians as murderous barbarians, and ending up forced to confront the idea that maybe his kin are just as barbaric when the occasion is 'right' (or, should I say, wrong).The final massacre is shocking, but hampered by the film's insistence on stacking the deck so completely in terms of depicting the US military as savages dripping with ee-vil. In other words, it loses its impact because it's so overdone.In reality, utterly barbaric attacks applied to both uncivilized Natives and the civilized Europeans, but more so with the former, which is documented. Since the 60s-70s there has been an overemphasis on the injustices committed by the US Army or settlers and we get a handful of examples: Wounded Knee, Bear River and Sand Creek (the latter being what "Soldier Blue" is based on). Yet we never hear the other side of what caused these events nor do we hear of the atrocities of Natives committed against New Americans. For instance, we never hear of the Dakota "War" of 1862 (Santee Sioux went on the war path and murdered between 600-800 white settlers, which constituted the largest death toll inflicted upon American civilians by an enemy force until 9/11), The Ward Massacre, The Nez Perce uprising which killed dozens of settlers in Idaho and Wyoming, and the Massacre at Fort Mims. We never hear of the countless innocent settlers who were murdered by roaming bands of young "warriors": While a chief was signing a peace treaty on the tribe's behalf they were out robbing, raping and murdering.I'm just saying that it's easy to be pro-Native sitting on the comfort of your sofa, but not so much when you and your loved ones are threatened with torture & slaughter.The Europeans wanted the Native's land and resources while the Indians wanted the technology of the Europeans. Both sides used treaties to make peace while still trying to get what they wanted when war was too expensive. Both sides made war when they felt no other option.I love Native American culture, but the whitewashing of Native atrocities and this revisionist history stuff is dishonest and unbalanced. "Soldier Blue" is guilty of this but, as a movie, it's entertaining and its message is necessary in light of all the movies that depict Indians as sub-human savages to be gunned down on the spot.The film runs 114 minutes and was shot in Mexico.GRADE: B

I was told about this film at an early age. But do not think I saw it when I was younger. But saw it a year ago and I spent quite taken by the end. I had to find out everything about this film. Backgrunds story is something I can recommend that people read about before. Both the historical event but also about the film and how important it is for movies.When I was younger I did not like the cowboy movies directly and I will not be one today. (There are exceptions). This movie showed me that the reality actually was back then. It tries to be funny but fail but succeed because it's so bad good.It's more a just a brutal history. Something as important as all other families of people have done, and continue generating do accept walk.I love when I get to see this kind of movie that inspired me and makes me want to find out more, which makes me want to learn more, know more.Think this is a must for all those who love the movie whether you like cowboy movies or not. It is much more a it. It is a masterpiece. But because of their B-film sensation will unfortunately not the large mass of people put an eye on this movie.The last part of the movie. So I thought that it could be started. I want to see more of what happened after the. There are good documentary about this particular incident. There I find very awful things that could be done film.But instead, they talk about a strong woman who wants to help people. Think they'd shown it continue the story of what happened after.

Private Honus Gent and Cresta Lee are the sole survivors of a U.S cavalry platoon which was massacred by the Cheyenne. Cresta has been a prisoner of the Indians and has come to sympathise with their struggle, whereas Honus is a naïve soldier who has a robust faith in the army's Indian policy. Together they embark on an arduous journey to Fort Reunion and develop a strained love/hate relationship along the way. Despite finding it hard to accept Cresta's liberal beliefs, Honus soon finds himself falling for her. Upon reaching Fort Reunion, both of them find Colonel Iverson and his troops preparing to attack a peaceful Cheyenne village and their lives are changed forever...The "wild west" takes a chillingly bitter look at itself in Ralph Nelson's highly controversial gorefest. Firstly, I believe Soldier Blue to be one of the most definitive anti war movies due to it's shocking parallels to late 60s America. Made at the height of the Vietnam war and the peace movement when anti war sentiment was rife, Soldier Blue borrows heavily from the mindset behind both. The film is a social commentary. We have the two main characters, the radical young woman who despises war and the conservative young soldier who vows to carry pout his orders whether or not the cause is just. Then there is the military who have their own ideas on how to deal with the so called "enemy". Rooted in historical fact, the finale of Soldier Blue was inspired by one of the most disturbing and forgotten genocides in American history, the Sand Creek massacre of 1864. This atrocity was perpetrated by the Colorado Territory Militia under Colonel John Chivington, most of it's victims were defenceless women and children. The climatic battle(or should I say massacre)is probably the most horrific action sequence ever committed to film!. It's nothing more than an orgy of wanton brutality. The scene wasn't as graphic as I had thought(the region 2 DVD print seemed to be cut), but that didn't make it any less harrowing. The shots of women being beheaded, raped and mutilated and children being indiscriminately trampled and gunned down will be imprinted on my mind for years to come. Cinema-goers must have been puking into their popcorn boxes back in 1970. Furthermore, the myth behind the cavalry riding to the rescue is eternally destroyed in 5 minutes. Now the "boys in blue" were the savages, bloodthirsty sadists who indulge in mass murder. Despite the ferocious nature of this sequence, I did think some of the special effects were impressively realistic. Even more alarming is how the soldiers are laughing as they murder the Cheyenne, to them the chaos is just a bit of fun. Overall, the entire sequence itself seems to allude to the My Lai massacre. Ironically, the middle of Soldier Blue focuses on the humorous but tender affection that blossoms between Honus and Cresta before the depraved bloodbath is forced upon the viewer.The movie featured amazing performances all round. Candice Bergen nearly stole the show as Cresta but Peter Strauss was truly fantastic as Honus. His enraged disgust with the army as he powerlessly observes the carnage of the climatic atrocity was absolutely invigorating. The chemistry between himself and Bergen was also brilliantly constructed. British actor Donald Pleasence was superb as Isaac Q. Cumber(yes that's right)as was John Anderson as Colonel Iverson. The irony of his character is that he is supposed to be upholding law, order and peace but instead gets pleasure from butchering the helpless Cheyenne. The Colonel makes two speeches in the movie before and after the massacre which, thanks to the masterful writing, convey(unashamedly)the hypocrisy of war. The soundtrack was very late 60s but the film had an inspiring title song thanks to Buffy Sainte-Marie.After watching Soldier Blue I will never look at another Indians vs. cavalry western in the same way again. The movie will solely be remembered for it's nauseating climax, although amongst the severe barbarity is a profound moral statement. Some will say that Soldier Blue should never have been made, but it's a story that needed to be told and for once, I'm glad they got it right.9/10.