Review of The Return of a Man Called Horse

I never hear anyone refer to this as a quality movie. Only eight user reviews here. This is actually a good, entertaining movie that is being overlooked.

Here's what I liked:

• The teepee village sets and the fort set had a very authentic feel to them. It's clear that very knowledgeable consultants were used to construct these sets.

• Richard Harris fills this role admirably. I found his character very believable. This is quite an accomplishment, since the basic plot is fundamentally implausible.

• Nice balance between the "good" Indians and "bad" Indians and "good" Whites (or "good White" as the case may be) and "bad" Whites. This prevented the movie from becoming over-melodramatic or maudlin.

• Excellent placement of the story in the vastly underused pre-Civil War trapper/mountain man historical period.

• Good location shooting. Nice shots of buffalo herds. Well filmed buffalo hunt.

• Effective mix of English, Sioux language and subtitles.

Here's what kept it from being better:

• As mentioned above, the premise of the movie is fundamentally implausible. I give great credit to Richard Harris for making his character believable.

• It has a nice Indian point of view and mostly avoids high melodrama by presenting good and bad Indians. However its "Indian-friendliness" is undercut severely by two things: one, the use of many Caucasian actors in Indian roles and two, the supremacy of "Horse" as the White leader of the hapless Yellow Hand Indians.

• Geoffrey Lewis was a weak heavy. He didn't help "High Plains Drifter" much either in a similar role. Should have stuck with orangutan movies. Very weak supporting cast overall behind Harris.

• No comic relief.

• In the final battle scene, a dozen Yellow Hand squaws on foot with no rifles wipe out an equal number of opposing male warriors, who are armed with rifles and on horseback. Still trying to figure that one out.

• I fast forwarded through the sadistic pagan breast piercing/cleansing ritual or whatever it was. Gimmicky and gratuitous gore.

• One more thing. Did ALL the whites have to be massacred at the fort? Were they all murderers and rapists? Weren't there a few decent Joe's there just out trapping? Maybe a few guys just passing through who would have disapproved of the Yellow Hand massacre? Just sayin'.....