Cochise states the truth plainly: the reservations are worse than war. They kill children, the sick, and the elderly. They drive men to drink and suicide. They are slow death.
"Fort Apache" does not end with the standard Indian surrender. This is one battle they won along the exhausting path to defeat. There is no sense of victory however, no pleasure taken in conquering their foe. Nothing is gained by their victory, except perhaps a few more days of freedom. I found this to be a profoundly moving film, exceptionally brave and notably direct.
John Wayne assumes a supporting role, playing the conscience to Henry Fonda's take-no-prisoners mentality. Cast against type, Fonda is the grumpy colonel and Wayne the compassionate officer. The result is two of those actors' finest performances, with a special note to Wayne who seems as relaxed and loose in this film as any I have seen.
Critics have labelled this the first of Ford's Cavalry trilogy, but the truth is Ford himself saw no connection between the films (including "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" and "Rio Grande"). Granted they all feature the US Cavalry, but each has a distinct voice and story to tell. Of the three, "Rio Grande" is the weakest, while the others are absolute musts for any serious student/admirer of the work of John Ford.
Note the pacing of "Fort Apache," the complete lack of action for the film's first hour. Not unlike Vidor's "The Big Parade," Ford spends the first half of his film appreciating the comraderie and discipline of army life, then with the second half he dipicts how quickly and easily it can all slip away. The script is a wonderful blend of humour and horror, often daring to show how close the two are related.
Note: a nineteen year-old Shirley Temple plays Fonda's daughter-her love interest in the film, John Agar, would later become her real-life husband.
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