Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

Good movie but grossly overrated

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

I have many reasons for liking this film. First, I will admit I heard of it while growing up in a small town in Texas. The filming locations for Indian Paint state that it was filmed in Grand Prairie, Texas and in "Texas" (which, for me, means that there were too many locations to name, but that's just my opinion). But I know specifically of a town where scenes were filmed nearby and that town is Cleburne, Texas. My older sister (by 10 years) was a young teeny-bopper at the time and knew all about Johnny Crawford and even his brother Robert (Bobby) Crawford Jr. In my small town, even in the pre-internet days, it was no secret that a Johnny Crawford film was being made the next town over. Due to my sister's urging, no doubt, my Dad took her and some of her friends to Cleburne to see if they could find the hotel where the Crawfords were staying.As there were only so many hotels in town, it wasn't hard to track down and my sister told me of how Bobby Crawford (who was a heartthrob himself for teen girls at the time) saw girls gathering and was playing peek-a-boo with them in and out of the hotel, much to their squealing delight. Meanwhile, my Dad, who could talk his way into many an opportunistic situation, asked a man who was getting into a jeep with a production logo on the side if he could give him a lift to the set. The guy said, "sure," and off my Dad set off towards the filming site. They talked along the way and soon my Dad had to confess that he wasn't part of the film crew. The guy promptly let him out and took off. Back in those days, it wasn't hard to catch a ride (at least in our part of Texas), so Dad got back to Cleburne and met up with my Mom, sister, and her friends. For small-town Texas folk, this was a fun time. I'd heard that story several times as a kid. Coincidentally, I grew up loving The Rifleman (in reruns) as my favorite TV Western. I didn't really think of Johnny Crawford in the years to come as the same kid that had filmed Indian Paint. Cut to 1979, and my younger sister got engaged to a guy who was/and is a brilliant Western painter locally. I tagged along with them to visit his family home south of Cleburne and found out that Indian Paint had been partially filmed on their land. My sister's fiancé and his brother even had a small part in the film, but it's one of those "blink and you'll miss it" moments. He showed it to us on VHS and I was just reminded what a small world it is. As for the film itself, I remember liking it very much for what it was. Not perfect by any means but a gentle, likable family film. Someday I'll try to pick it up on DVD and revel in the memories. Sorry this wasn't as much a review as it was a trip down memory lane for a middle-aged guy.

If Indian Paint hadn't started out with a bad historical error I might have given it a star or two higher rating. But even a B independent picture should not have made such a bad mistake. Right at the beginning the narrator says that the story is set in the time before the white man came to the western hemisphere and the Indians who are plains Indians are all riding horses.Even high school history students know that the horse came to America first from Cortes who let his stock run free and multiply in Mexico. Horses gradually moved north or were traded north by tribes to the south to their northern brethren who envied what could be done on horseback.Such an incredibly silly error mars a very nice story of a young Indian boy coming of age as a warrior through his love and care for a wild colt that everyone else says can't be broken. Jay Silverheels is the chief of the Arikawaha tribe and he's got considerably more dialog than what he used to have in The Lone Ranger. Silverheels's son is Johnny Crawford two years from The Rifleman and trying to keep his career alive as a teenage heartthrob. He plays the lad trying to tame the wild colt and has quite a few adventures in the process.Some criticism is voiced about not having American Indian players in the roles that whites have in this film. Take a look at the credits and you'll see one Robert Crawford, Sr. is the associate producer of Indian Paint. That should answer the question why his Johnny was cast in the lead. Please note that Robert Crawford, Jr. who was a regular in the Laramie series while Johnny was on The Rifleman is cast as Johnny's best friend. I think this is the last time the Crawford brothers worked together on a project.Indian Paint was shot on a shoestring completely outdoors in Texas where the action would have taken place a few hundred years earlier. It does lack some production values that a big studio could have given, but it's still a nice story, good family viewing.But let no one come away with the fact that horses were being ridden before Columbus got here.

Very much of the time story of a young Indian brave who bonds with a young colt during their time away from the tribe. While away the young man also grows up into a man.Not my cup of tea western tale gets points for trying not to be the typical depiction of native Americans but at the same time it still suffers from some Hollywood conventions such as Caucasian actors playing Native Americans. Aimed firmly at the family audience the film might give some parents kittens with its "graphic" depiction of death between warriors(its not off screen but it is hidden). I liked that the film doesn't really shy away from real life. Unfortunately the film never fully clicked with me since it's, as I said, aimed at the family audience so some of the twists and turns seemed to be aimed more at teaching a lesson then being full realistic.Worth seeing if the plot appeals to you or you like westerns.

I waited 42 years to see this movie. My mother wouldn't let me when it came out, and it has been virtually impossible to find it on video until I checked Netflix. I was very fulfilled to be able to watch my childhood hero Johnny Crawford in this movie finally. I'm sure Native Americans would not agree with much of the content in here by today's standards, but by the standards of 1964, it was fairly agreeable. The Indians were fighting one another, and there is no conflict with "the White Man." It's an improbable story of a boy and his horse but I sure enjoyed it. If you watch carefully, the horse, as both a colt and an adult, are played by several different horses.