To me, this movie is perfection.

Memorable, crazy movie

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

RELEASED IN 1955 and directed by Anthony Mann, "The Last Frontier" (aka "Savage Wilderness") stars Victor Mature as an uncivilized mountain man in 1864 who, along with his two trapper buddies (James Whitmore & Pat Hogan), seeks succor at a wilderness fort on (or near) the Bozeman Trail in the Northwest manned by a young captain (Guy Madison) and a brigade of inexperienced recruits. Jed Cooper (Mature) can't help but be attracted to a beautiful, but distant woman at the fort (Anne Bancroft), who's waiting for her gun-ho husband, a dishonored colonel, to return from another remote fort (Robert Preston). Meanwhile, Red Cloud & his braves threaten Federal advances in the region. Peter Whitney plays a grim, hulking sergeant and Russell Collins a reasonable doctor at the fort. If you can get past the hopelessly hokey opening & closing song, this is a surprisingly great, original Western and one of Anthony Mann's best. The main role was originally intended for Brando, who certainly would've been interesting, but Mature performs with his renowned beaming gusto. While it might not seem like it on paper, the setting and plot are original for a Western and, believe it or not, this is easily the best fort & cavalry Western I've ever seen. No kidding. The characters aren't one-dimensional and are therefore interesting. Take, for instance, Preston's Colonel Marston: He's sort of made out to be the antagonist, but you can't help respect his decisiveness, courage and honorability. A lesser man, for example, would've hated the young Captain (Madison) for defying him whereas the Colonel actually respects him for his bold actions and even commends him (!). He understandably seeks redemption for his gallant failure at Shiloh, which unnecessarily cost the lives of a thousand men. This would be fine if it were only HIS life on the line rather than an entire brigade of raw recruits.The love affair subplot is handled well and the action-packed climax is unpredictable, although one-element (the final one) is eye-rolling and tacked-on by the studio (NOT approved by Mann). Nevertheless, "The Last Frontier" was a huge hit at the box off. It's akin to a mid-50's version of the remarkable "The Last of the Mohicans" (1992), albeit taking place a hundred years later in the remote northwest. THE MOVIE RUNS 98 minutes and was shot in Popocatépetl Volcano, Puebla, Mexico (SE of Mexico City), which is an acceptable substitute for the Oregon/Wyoming/Montana region. WRITERS: Philyp Yordan & Russell S. Hughes based on Richard Emery Roberts' novel "The Gilded Rooster." GRADE: A

Hope you caught the pun in my title! I much enjoyed this film, which offers a variety of interesting subplots and complex love-hate relationships, along with interspersed action sequences and some lighthearted moments in which the free-spirited mountain men counter regimented army discipline. All the main characters are well cast. Some reviewers question the wisdom of choosing middle-aged Victor Mature as the lead character, Jed Cooper. Yes, he was getting a bit puffy-eyed for a Tarzan-like western hillbilly. Others simply don't go for his personality or acting style. But, overall, I found him quite suitable for his wild man desiring to become marginally civilized role. Robert Mitchum would perhaps have been equally at home in this rile. Several reviewers would have preferred Burt Lancaster. Burt would have his chance as a loner trapper some years later in the eccentric western "The Scalphunters", worth checking out if you like mountain men tales.At first, I thought this story was taking place in Oregon, with the high dome-shaped volcanic cone often in the background and one of the forts named Medford. But, I soon realized that these were false clues. Fort Laramie was repeatedly mentioned as not too far away. Also, Red Cloud was repeatedly mentioned as the war chief of the recently belligerent Sioux. Well, these are strong clues that the story relates to the well-known Powder River War in northern Wyoming, between the US government and an alliance of Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho. Guy Madison's Captain Riordan and Robert Preston's Colonel Marston can be seen as modified versions of the historical Colonel Carrington and Captain Fetterman, respectively. As in the film, the Civil War-experienced, but Sioux -inexperienced overconfident Fetterman led his men into an ambush. As in the film, Fetterman's entire 81-man party was annihilated, considered the worst US cavalry disaster at the hands of Native Americans until Custer's much better remembered debacle. During the battle, Cooper(Mature) takes on the historic role of Captain Ten Eyck, sent to investigate the gunplay heard and deciding it was prudent to retreat.Incidentally, the army did build 3 forts in this area in the late Civil War years, but their names were changed in the film and, by treaty, they were soon abandoned, later burned by the Sioux. The main reason for all this sudden animosity was the discovery of rich placer gold deposits in Montana Territory, just northwest of the present Yellowstone Park. Swarms of draft-dodging prospectors and other sorts had been negotiating the newly established Bozeman Trail across Wyoming to these goldfields, right through the currently favorite hunting grounds of the relevant tribes. The classic Clark Gable-starring western "The Tall Men", released the same year as this film, also relates to this gold fever and he also had to deal with Red Cloud, in a semi-historical script.The main problem I find with the plot is the historical anachronism of the 3 buddy trappers. The era of pure trapper mountain men had pretty much ended 25 years before the end of the Civil War with the collapse of western beaver populations and the simultaneous collapse of a market for such. Thus, these trappers were limited to much less valuable furs and hides. As others have pointed out, the plot bears a striking resemblance to the previous John Ford "Fort Apache", save for the location. In both cases, we have a commander arriving from the east to a frontier post with Native American problems. He underestimates the military prowess of his adversaries, regarding them as little more than easy cannon fodder to promote his career. He pays dearly(dies) for his inexperience and brashness. Also, this commander resents a subordinate who has long experience with the local Native Americans and warns him what is wise and unwise to do. In both films, we have a budding romantic relationship between a woman dear to the commander's heart and a subordinate, which the commander tries to squelch. Clearly, the commander must be eliminated to allow these romances to proceed to completion. In common with director Mann's film "The Far Country", the loner star's long-time partner must be eliminated to allow room for a woman to take his place. In the present film, Cooper has two partners, who independently die or disappear. James Whitmore plays one of them. Yes, he much reminds you of Spencer Tracy. This was Whitmore's second subsidiary role as a mountain man, also being in the Clark Gable-starring "Across the Wide Missouri"I found the verbal confrontation between Cooper and Marsden while the latter was trapped in a bear pit fall, along with the fallout from this incident, the most interesting aspect on this film. Anne Bancroft, as Marsen's conflicted wife, has a most interesting role, especially as it relates to this incident. The theme of most everyone associated with this fort being a misfit surfaces repeatedly. Most of the soldiers, including the commander, were sent here because they have 'problems' or are raw recruits. The trappers are misfits personality-wise with army discipline. Bancroft, as one of the few woman in this fort, is inherently a misfit, and hates it.

I enjoyed this western. Victor Mature played a good part. The scenery Is fantastic. I listened with headphones on because I discovered the soundtrack Is stereo- quite something for a western In 1955! Ann Bancroft looks nothing like she looked In the Graduate no where near as sexy! This western Is not run of the mill at all, most of the scenes are Inside a military fort or shot on location. Mature Is a trapper turned military scout trying to prevent a glory-mad Colonel from attacking the Indians as It would mean a massacre of the whole fort. Robert Preston plays the colonel who Is constantly at loggerheads with Mature. All in all a very entertaining western.

The casting of Mature as the "savage" and Robert Preston (NOT Preston Foster!!) as the crazed cavalry officer made this one very appealing. The story, pushing the envelope for it's time, has our hero attempting to steal a married woman. James Whitmore has a nice supporting role, and take it from me-the BEST westerns came out of the 50s!