In 1870, when white men and Indians are fighting bitterly, Tom Jeffords (Stewart) strongly believes the Apaches are treated unfairly. After befriending their leader Cochise (Jeff Chandler) and arranging a truce, he is called upon by a U.S. Army general to negotiate a government peace treaty. Though he fulfills his mission, Jeffords soon experiences great tragedy when he, his Indian wife (Debra Paget) and good friend Cochise become targets of a renegade ambush.

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35 of 36 found the following review helpful:

Realistic Western from the 50's!Jun 07, 2007
By G. Martin "soixantaine"
This really is a terrific Western! The story you probably know by now, what you may not know is the great DVD tranfer, great color, and great Sedona Ariz. filming locations!

Jimmy Stewart starting doing westerns in 1950 with Winchester 73', a black and white film and a classic. Broken Arrow was his second entry and 5 more followed in the 1950's. But none were to top Broken Arrow. Or Winchester 73'!

Not only is the story very solid, fiction based on real events and people, but all the actors casting is flawless! Will Geer, an emotionally hurt settler, Debra Paget at 17 looking like a Indian instead of a young startlet, and Jeff Chandler as Cochise in a very believable good performance. Mabye his best!

And make sure to check out Jay Silverheels in the role of Geronimo, a top notch performance and I think biggest speaking part of anything he'd ever been in, including the Lone Ranger series. When he defies Cochise to follow the peace trail, his emotion is so powerful that it jumps off the screen. A truly great moment in the film. I had to replay that scene many times because I liked it so much!

I'm proud to place this among my Western Collection of DVDs!

15 of 16 found the following review helpful:

Vintage Jimmy Stewart; A Great WesternFeb 04, 1999
By Dennis J. Buckley
Though far from historically accurate, _Broken Arrow_ is an agreeable, upbeat action film that has some thought behind it. This is not an entirely predictable moral tale, but acknowledges the savagery of the clash between Indians and Whites in the west.

The story, though told by the Indian agent Tom Jeffords (Stewart) is really that of the great Apache leader, Cochise (Chandler). It is in the study of Cochise that much of the film's fascination lies. Though Stewart's narrative frames the story, it is Cochise's decisions and actions that move the peace process forward.

Though admittedly some of the Indians are portrayed by white actors, just consider these cast members: Iron Eyes Cody as one of Cochise's lieutenants, Teese; John War Eagle as the spurned suitor, Nahilzay; and Jay Silverheels as the deadly and intransigent Geronimo-- in an excellent performance that is a far cry from his affable 'Tonto' of _Lone Ranger_ films and series!

Also watch for a young Will Geer cast against type as the embittered and treacherous Ben Slade, and the great character actor, Arthur Hunnicutt, as reluctant Stewart sidekick Milt Duffield.

This is a great western, and despite the somewhat schmaltzy romantic plot, it plays well today just as it did almost 50 years ago.

18 of 20 found the following review helpful:

One of the Absolute BestJun 07, 2007
By William R. Hancock
From time to time on the net I come across these ever-present lists where someone is sounding off about what they say are the "best" of such and so . Frequently I see "best westerns" or "best war movie" lists and find myself laughing out loud when one of these things omits something universally acknowledged to be a Classic. When that happens you know you're dealing with a relative "newbie" in the world whose exposure to genre cinema isn't nearly as expansive as they think it is. War Movie lists that leave off "Sergeant York" (out of sight for along time) come to mind. So do "Best Westerns" lists that ignore "Broken Arrow" (another hard to find one for quite a while). This film is a treasure.

To all who think "Broken Arrow" is a John Travolta/Christian Slater military action thriller, I've got news for you: Travolta/Slater is just an "ehhh" popcorn programmer that happens to LIFT the title of one of the

most admired, acclaimed, respected, and loved westerns of all time; one that belongs up there with "The Searchers" , "Fort Apache", and others in the category of "the greatest".

Released in 1950, this Delmer Daves film tells the true (with very little ...and, even then, only minor...fictionalization) story of ex-Army officer Tom Jeffords and his early-1870s interactions with the great Apache warrior Cochise; a relationship that led to a major degree of peace in Arizona in the long run. It is a tale well written, well told, and beautifully photographed. Nominated for several Oscars and Golden Globe Awards, it won the Golden Globe for best screenplay.

Shot in magnificent locations in Sedona and Flagstaff, Arizona, and Lone Pine, California, the scenics are just gorgeous and the color cinematography absolutely superb.

The cast is fabulous as well. Jimmy Stewart turns in a great performance as Jeffords (gee, what a surprise! Stewart ALWAYS delivers!) but the performance to watch is Jeff Chandler as Cochise. It is awesome and well worthy of the Oscar nomination he received for it. To those unfamiliar with Jeff Chandler , he was a VERY popular he-man (like Duke Wayne or Robert Mitchum) actor of the fifties who possessed a facial bone structure like carved granite and a head of thick, prematurely grey hair. This was a guy born to play in westerns and private detective thrillers.

Chandler was on his way towards icon status when he died unexpectedly much before his time. He lives on here as Cochise, though, and this is not a bad legacy to leave behind.

Also here is one of the greatest acting beauties of the 50s, the breathtakingly beautiful Debra Paget. Paget could hold a male audience spellbound and get them all agitated when directors would kill her off ,as in "Broken Arrow", and, when they had her jump into a volcano as a self-sacrifice in the 2nd version of "Bird of Paradise" ( I remember yelling "Noooooooooo!" when I first saw that on tv years ago).

Many familiar character actors turn up here, among them Iron Eyes Cody and Arthur Hunnicutt. Hunnicutt, bearded and carrying a bugle, would, some eighteen years later, appear as "Bull" with Duke Wayne and Bob Mitchum in Howard Hawks' "El Dorado". Here he is "Milt Duffield" a friend of Tom Jeffords.

Also making a splash in "Broken Arrow" is Mohawk character actor Harold J. Smith, playing Cochise's nemesis, Geronimo. Don't know him? SURE you do. You just know him as Jay Silverheels, and, at the same time he was playing hard-edged bad boy Geronimo for 20th Century Fox, he was off

also playing good guy Tonto with Clayton Moore's Lone Ranger for George Trendle.

All these elements combine here to make for a wonderful movie, western or otherwise.

It would also be interesting to note that this film has an affiliation with John Ford's "Fort Apache" in that, in "FA", Henry Fonda's unscrupulous "Col.Thursday" uses John Wayne's "Capt. York" character to deceive Cochise into a parley where he insults him (to Wayne's horror and disgust) and tries to capture his band. Fonda "gets his" because of this, deservedly so. One could almost watch "Fort Apache" and then "Broken Arrow" one right after the other and get a sense of this chief and his people...and understand that, in order to have any common ground with him, you did not try to trick him, con him, or lie to him. You did so at your peril.

One might also note that the popularity of this film carried over into a t.v. show in the fifties. The t.v. "Broken Arrow" starred John Lupton as Jeffords and Michael Ansara as Cochise. It featured mainly "keeping the peace" and "countering Geronimo" type stories.

Again, this one is real keeper. Rent it, buy it, watch it. You won't be sorry in the least. I am very glad its available again.

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