Dick
Senior HTF Member
- Joined
- May 22, 1999
- Messages
- 9,937
- Real Name
- Rick
This film has been released to video only in pan and scan and severely edited from its original R-rated version. I do understand it is reviled by some for its extreme violence, but what is conveniently overlooked is that the Sand Creek Massacre of 1864, which this film depicts, was far more brutal than the unedited film suggests. Despite a rather banal sub-plot involving a romance between Candice Bergen and Peter Strauss, the film is quite powerful and was one of the first to admit that most of us had been "had" in our history classes in school - the Cavalry soldiers were frequently NOT the good guys, and the Indians often NOT the bad guys. Our history of Manifest Destiny regardless of who stood in the way (or who was here before we) is shameful, and SOLDIER BLUE rather bravely brought this to the fore. The movie did come out during the Vietnam War and many critics decided the movie was supposed to mirror our involvement in that war, but the horrific documented FACTS about the U.S. Army's deceitful and ultimately genocical attitude toward Native Americans are fodder enough to justify the intensity of this film. I urge you, MGM, to release this film uncut and in anamorphic 2.35:1.