Apache Uprising (1965)

A brilliant film that helped define a genre

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

A motley assortment of passengers take the stage for Lordsburg and Apache Wells; two of them -- Rory Calhoun and Arthur Hunnicutt -- tell Richard Arlen that the Apaches burned a wagon train. I was all prepared for an A.C. Lyles produced remake of STAGECOACH. Instead, it switched halfway through and turned into something quite different.It's still a Geezer Western, with all the actors of an earlier era, happy to pick up a paycheck: Red Barry. Jean Parker and Johnny Mack Brown in small parts, Lon Chaney Jr. as the coach driver, DeForest Kelly as the psycho gunman ... but in the end it switched gears often enough in surprising but sensible ways to keep up my interest, and turned into a tough, hard western.

SYNOPSIS: A stagecoach operator plans to rob a relay station of its gold. NOTES: Locations in the Mojave Desert. COMMENT: While not quite up to their usual actionful, briskly-paced standard, this A. C. Lyles/R. G. Springsteen western is worth seeing if only for the opportunity of renewing screen acquaintance with such a grand roster of veteran players, particularly John Russell as the criminal mastermind, Johnny Mack Brown as a self-seeking sheriff, Lon Chaney as a laughing stage driver and DeForest Kelley as a schizoid gunfighter. Arlen's part is small, but Gene Evans is delightful as Kelley's sidekick. Technically, the film shows signs of hasty shooting, particularly in its variable color photography and obvious back projection. Production values are fair — though the film was made on a very limited budget, there is no utilization of stock footage.

I thought the screen writers were playing havoc with history here so I had to look a couple of things up. At one point Rory Calhoun's character Jim Walker states that the name 'Apache' means enemy. For some reason I doubted that, but checking a Dictionary.com entry I found that the word origin of 'Apache' comes from Mexican Spanish and quite literally means 'enemy'.Then there was that business about the movie's sect of Apaches being known as 'Tonto's'. It sounded a little too reminiscent of the Lone Ranger to me, but again, it turns out the Tonto Apache was one of a group of Western Apache Indians and the word also refers to their dialect. The Chiricahua Indians who lived to the South of the Apache called them 'brainless people' or 'people without minds', a more sophisticated way of saying wild or crazy.So once again I surprise myself with information I pick up in a movie Western. However all of this could have been put to better use in a more compelling story. I thought it kind of odd that the Cavalry troop under the command of Captain Gannon (Richard Arlen) gave such short shrift to Walker and his sidekick Bill Gibson (Arthur Hunnicutt) about the danger of Apaches in the vicinity of Apache Wells. I mean come on, it's right there in the name isn't it? Now I'm on record in some of my other movie reviews as having a preference for John Russell as an outlaw, but man, he was pretty intense here, wasn't he? That nasty scar below his right eye was a bonus as far as I was concerned, although it did look like his make-up changed from time to time. And if that wasn't obvious enough, whenever Jim Walker got physical with one of the bad guys in a dust up you could clearly make out a stunt double filling in for him. I don't think I've ever seen it as noticeable before even though it happens all the time.But the actor who takes the gold star here for 'over the top' is DeForrest Kelley and his manic performance as an all around lunatic stage robber; no self control whatsoever. With 'Star Trek' just around the corner the following year, I was waiting for him to come up with something like, "Jim, I'm an outlaw, not a good guy". And you know what, he would have been right all the way around.

I have been on an A.C. Lyles kick recently--seeing about a dozen of his movies in the last week. This producer was known for making low-budget westerns in the 1960s that feature actors who were well past their prime. In other words, old guys--VERY old guys. Sometimes this didn't work very well (such as during fight scenes between VERY aged actors) but generally I like the films, as the actors, though out of fashion, still have it in most cases. And, interestingly, Lyles used many of the same actors in many of his films--and Richard Arlen in apparently ALL of them! This film stars Rory Calhoun and also features the likes of Lon Chaney, DeForrest Kelley, John Russell (all frequent Lyles performers), Gene Evans, Corinne Calvet, Johnny Mack Brown, and Red Barry. Brown, Kelley and Barry both were once big names in TV and B-westerns and it's nice to see them here.The film begins with Jim Walker (Calhoun) and Bill Gibson (Arthur Hunnicutt) being attacked by Apache warriors. They manage to fight their way out and discover among the Indian dead souvenirs the Apache took of recent attacks on the US Cavalry. They soon meet up with some soldiers (led by Arlen) and inform them of what they found. Well, oddly, no one in town seems to believe them--thinking Walker and Gibson are over-blowing the problem. And so, the local stage decides to go anyway--even with the possibility of crazed Indians waiting to attack. Oddly, Walker and Gibson agree to go along on the stage to help protect the passengers. Unfortunately, a super-crazy hired gun (Kelley) is on board--and he's a born trouble-maker. You just KNOW that sooner or later, he and Walker are going to have it out once and for all. However, it becomes a lot more interesting when the gunman, his friend and his boss suddenly take everyone hostage. Now, the folks might not need to worry about the Apache. What's next? See the film and find out yourself.In many ways, this film seems a bit like a reworking of the film "Stagecoach". It is NOT a remake--it just has a LOT of similarities--such as the 'hooker with a heart of gold' (Calvet) and the embezzler. Because of this, there's not a lot of originality here, though it was made more enjoyable due to Kelley's VERY florid performance. While not quite as enjoyable, Chaney was also quite good as a grizzled old coot. But, if the you watch the film, understand it is NOT high art! There are lots of sloppy problems with it--more than you'd usually find in a Lyles film. For example, there is a scene where Evans and Calhoun have a fist-fight--and it's VERY obvious they're using stunt-men. Heck, while Evans is balding, his stuntman has a full head of hair. Also, there is a HUGE rainstorm in the film--huge. And yet, the next day, the ground is completely dry--and I am talking about dusty dry! Obviously the director, R.G. Springsteen, was no genius.Worth seeing if you love the genre or Lyles' productions, though this is not an especially great western.