Review of Geronimo

Introduction

Not being a great fan of Westerns as a genre I knew nothing of this folksy re-telling of the Geronimo story. In truth, I knew very little about Geronimo - which is probably just as well because this entertaining romp unfolds in the unlikeliest of ways which can`t possibly bear even a passing reflection of fact. Still - who cares? If, like me, `Geronimo` means little more to you than something you yell whenever you leap over a hole, then you can sit back and watch this in the manner intended. Sheer escapist entertainment.

Produced in 1962, and Directed by TV veteran Arnold Laven (`The Rifleman` - hence the Chuck Connors connection, but also `Hill Street Blues` and `The A-Team`), this is a Western that has all the right ingredients in all the right places, and unapologetically so. This a Western trying to be a Western and nothing more, and that`s the way they used to make`em. Well, before the US developed a thorny guilt-complex over their less than perfect history, and every Western became a philosophical journey that eventually took all the life out of the genre.

Some would argue that, despite this being a cliché-riddled movie, that it played its part in that process of moving the Western from Randolph Scott / John Wayne shoot `em ups to something with a modicum of social conscience. They would argue that this was amongst the first to see things from the `Injuns` point of view - and to some degree it does. But it doesn`t go particularly far in this respect. Sure it shows some modest exploitation, and a couple of `bad apples` giving the Apaches a hard-time, but the movie is resolved with the most half-assed way imaginable with Geronimo agreeing to live under US law as long as he`s treated with respect, and given some land to call his own. Not a great deal by today`s standards.

Chuck Connors is not everyone`s idea of a native Indian, though his smouldering good looks, and piercing blue-eyes give him a charisma that makes him seem like the perfect choice. It`s notable that there`s not a single Native American actor amongst his compatriots, some of whom look more like overweight traffic cops.

At least the Apaches are seen here as a caring (but tough) people who had great pride and demand respect. The reality of history is that Geronimo was the last Apache on record to revolt against his forced captivity within a reservation. In the movie, this is taken a step further when the land the Apaches are forced to live on and nurture is to be sold from under them, forcing them into smaller, less fertile lands. This is enough to precipitate the revolt that sees Geronimo, and some 50 men, women and children escape from the reservation and hide out in the hills of Mexico. More than 5000 troops are deployed to re-capture or destroy him, yet are unable to do so.

Amongst all the fighting there is love interest in the form of Geronimo`s feisty, book-reading Wife, Kamala Devi (who, for the trivia fans, was to marry the real Chuck Connors following their success in this movie together). She has his child during the final attack, cannon balls reigning down within feet of where she`s lying, all adding to the tension and drama of the film`s closing moments. The tensions between her belief that there is a better way ahead than violence, and his view that `boys should be warriors not children` adds a nice undercurrent to the plot and serves as the symbolic and inevitable move from the primitive culture of the Apache to the cultured (and supposedly better) world of the new West. Geronimo even reluctantly gets her a book from one of his missions and she is delighted, despite the fact that it is just a Cavalryman`s handbook.

Adam West also makes a notable appearance (some four years before his appearance as the masked crusader) as a sympathetic cavalry man, but here he`s plain wooden without the irony.

Video

Presented in wonderfully wide 2:35:1 - the wide Mexican plains look magnificent here. It seems to be both a good print (nicely saturated colours, great definition and contrast) as well as a high quality digital transfer, though an underlying softness (that seems common on these MGM releases) gives me a slightly nagging feeling that they may be (very good) PAL transfers from NTSC masters. But if this is your bag, then don`t let the nit picking ruin what is, after all, a very reasonable copy.

Audio

An unremarkable Digital Mono soundtrack though perfectly serviceable.

Features

None.

Conclusion

This 1962 Western, telling the tale of `Geronimo`, the last of the Apaches to revolt against `imprisonment` in a reservation, may not end up being used in history classes but is an enjoyable romp nonetheless. Chuck Connors, with his smouldering good looks, and piercing blue eyes, was riding on the back of his success as `The Rifleman` when this movie was made, and there`s plenty for the girls to swoon at here. TV Trivia fans will particularly enjoy seeing a terribly wooden Adam West as a well-meaning cavalryman too. But, whilst the movie may seem to have a social conscience, there`s much here that wouldn`t get under the politically correct limbo bar today and may get in the way of your enjoyment of what is essentially just good escapist entertainment. Recommended - if you like this sort of thing.