So much average

i must have seen a different film!!

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

I caught "The Last Wagon" for the first time on TV many moons ago. All I remember is that it kicked axx from beginning to end. Seeing it again last night, I'm happy to report that this 1956 Western holds up well despite the dated score.THE STORY: Richard Widmark stars as Comanche Todd, a white man raised by Comanches and under arrest for murder. Deep in hostile Apache territory he soon finds himself the leader of a small group of youths from a wagon train. Will they make it out alive? And, even if they do, can Todd escape the sentence of death-by-hanging? First of all, this film is gorgeous to look at -- shot on location in Sedona, Arizona, at the mouth of Oak Creek Canyon.Secondly, not only is the plot excellent, so are the characters, cast and everything else. The film successfully takes you back to the late 1800s and gives a good glimpse of what it must have been like to travel out West during that time.Felicia Farr and Susan Kohner stand out in the supporting cast; both are incredibly beautiful. Each youth has his/her issue(s) and grows much as a result of their experiences with Comanche Todd and the dire situation. For instance, Susan (Jolie) is ashamed that she's half-Indian but Todd teaches her to be proud of who and what she is. Others hate Todd for being an "injun lover" but later see the error of their ways. Todd himself is lost in in a fog of bitterness & revenge but a new potential family is thrown in his lap. Can he get over his disillusionment to see the blessing in his current situation? This is just a taste of the character arcs addressed in the story.Stop the presses! Christianity and Christians are actually portrayed in a positive light -- amazing! Yet so are the beliefs/practices of the Natives. The film does an outstanding job of taking the middle road with the settlers and the natives. Not to mention, the Indians are portrayed realistically, unlike many 50's Westerns where you just roll your eyes at their silly depiction.Aside from the dated score (which isn't bad, just dated), the only negative I can cite would be the way in which the conflict with the Apaches is concluded. But the film makes up for it with a powerful end-commentary on the nature of universal justice.The DVD features both the widescreen and fullscreen versions.MY GRADE: A

Comanche Todd (Widmark) must lead a small band of teenage survivors through hostile Apache territory, despite suspicions about his Indian background.It's a great shot when the wheel with Todd shackled to it gets pulled up the rock overhang, with the spectacular Technicolor scenery behind it. The young folks better save him if they want to get through Apache country, but can they trust him. He may be white on the outside, but he's Indian on the inside. Plus, he's already killed four white men, with a white man's court waiting to hang him. And to top it off, he's an ornery cuss even if he does know how to get a rabbit out of its burrow. No doubt about it, the youngsters are in a tight spot.The real star here is the magnificent Sedona scenery, never better filmed or blended into the story. However, two popular themes of the time do emerge—rebellious teens (think the previous year's Rebel Without a Cause) and race prejudice (with Indians standing in for an emerging civil rights movement). There's some tension in the little band's predicament; however, the story is more about human interest than battling Apaches. On the upside are fine performances from Widmark and an unheralded George Mathews's sadistic sheriff. On the downside are shaky turns by Griffin and Kohner as the feuding half-sisters, along with a screenplay that sometimes meanders. Nonetheless, it's all smoothly helmed by writer- director Delmer Daves. Daves is probably best remembered for his 1960 soap-opera smash, A Summer Place. Too bad that he remains an under-rated director of Westerns, starting with Drum Beat (1954) and ending with The Hanging Tree (1959). The best of these is the tense and taut 3:10 to Yuma (1957) , followed closely by the scenic and sprawling Jubal (1956). I mention these because the late 50's was so thick with TV and theatrical Westerns that I'm afraid Daves' contribution has been overlooked. His Westerns may lack the thematic continuity of the celebrated Boetticher-Ranown series, yet he shows a rare ability to handle a wide array of Western themes with both skill and sensitivity, as he does here.

This film begins with Richard Widmark being chased by a posse. In the process, Widmark kills several of the deputies until he is ultimately captured. The sheriff (along with Widmark) soon meets up with a wagon train and tags along with them until he can get his prisoner back to town for a proper hanging. As for why Widmark did all these nasty murders, he is supposedly part Comanche (he sure doesn't look it--that's because he was a white orphan raised by the tribe) and has a total disregard for society--and somehow this entitles him to kill with abandon.Problems soon develop with the settlers. They are devout people and can't stand the way the sheriff takes pleasure in tormenting Widmark (who is now handcuffed to a wagon wheel). What happens next with Widmark and the sheriff is something you'll need to see for yourself.Soon another parallel story begins as well. One of the ladies in the wagon train is angry because her father was previously married to an American-Indian and she has a half-sister as a result. There is obviously much hatred of the 'half-breed' sister and the racist feelings the white sister feels is a parallel to the story of Widmark. Occasionally this tension seems a bit overdone--especially since you'd think the angry white sister would have come to terms with her half-sister and the white settlers would get tired of using words like 'savage' so much. Subtle its message ain't and the one young lady in particular plays a character too unlikable and annoying to be real--the one and only real deficit in an otherwise good film.Unfortunately for the wagon train, the land they eventually enter is Indian land. Soon, it appears that the Indians are angry about their land being invaded and it appears that all of the settlers' lives are about to be snuffed. At this point, the tables are turned and it's up to the cold-blooded killer, Widmark, to save the day--escorting the survivors to safety and teaching them to live off the land like natives.By the way, as you watch Widmark chained to the wagon wheel and doing some stunts as well while connected to the wheel, you are impressed by how much he was willing to do for this role. Occasionally, you assume it's a stuntman doing some of the scenes but in many cases it is clearly Widmark being tossed about in this very uncomfortable manner. What a guy...and what a good film.Overall, a very good film that is worth watching for its fine performance by Richard Widmark as well as an interesting and thought-provoking script. As I already said, the story isn't always subtle nor are a few of the characters, but it still is an earnest and enjoyable flick.

The Last Wagon is not in the Premier League of great westerns; but it should be. Delmer Davis has fashioned an exciting, pacey film, which has all the finest ingredients of the American West.The story is never less than interesting and absorbing,and sometimes superlative. Richard Widmark plays Commanche Todd perfectly, displaying ruthlessness, kindness, charm and craggy reliability, in equal measure.The Widmark easy grin trademark is evident, which only he can switch on, lending light relief to a grim story.But for me the film is notable for a love scene that compares easily with that of the famous train meeting between Cary Grant and Eve Marie Saint in North by Northwest. Felicia Farr as Jenny, and Todd, fetch up in the rocks of the wild prairie, and Todd makes his move. Then follows a curiously compelling verbal exchange that is achingly romantic,full of blossoming love and yearning, and charged with heady excitement.You can almost hear Farr's rapid heart beating. For one brief moment Felica Farr makes herself the most desirable women on the planet.When the kiss comes it makes your heart sigh. Then it's back to the action, and the film pulses along to a satisfying conclusion. But it will be Farr's breathlessness, sensuality and desirability that lingers in the mind.There have been countless Screen Goddess's;but only a few like Felicia Farr and Eve Marie Saint, have been able to effortlessly radiate true sex appeal