This splendid film is an accurate picture of post-Civil War Texas life , much as John Ford had earlier done with Alan LeMay's "The Searchers" . The neighbors of a frontier family named Zachary (Burt Lancaster , Audie Murphy , Doug McClure and their mother excellently played by Lillian Gish) turn on them when it is suspected that their adopted daughter was stolen from the local Kiawa tribe . Then , the battle between white men and Kiowas go on the warpath . Problems emerge when a secret about a mestizo results to be discovered . As a Kiowa tribe claims that the daughter (it was Audrey Hepburn's only Western) is one of their own , stolen in a raid and she will be excluded for both races .
Offbeat Western about racial intolerance focuses an enjoyable family and the dramatic deeds happen when a dark secret surfaces . It's an interesting western with exceptional interpretation from protagonist duo , Burt Lancaster and Audrey Hepburn . However , Audrey Hepburn was seriously injured when she was thrown by a horse between scenes spent six weeks in the hospital healing from a broken back, and when she returned to the set was able to complete her role wearing a back brace, John Huston blamed himself for the mishap and hated this movie, and Hepburn bore no ill will towards the director ; while Audrey was in hospital, Huston filmed scenes using a double . Furthermore , a likable Doug McClure as his kind brother , he is very fine as well as Audie Murphy as Cash, the hotheaded brother who reacts violently to learning his sister is a red skin Indian . Special mention to Lillian Gish as their affectionate mummy and Joseph Wiseman as the crazy Kelsey . The picture was well produced by Harold Hecht/James Hill/ Burt Lancaster ; they wanted to ensure its commerciality and change the film's direction , they wished to cast Kirk Douglas as Lancaster's brother, which would throw off the balance in the brothers' relationship. The first effort at a rewrite did not work and after fifty pages into the second rewrite, the original writer , J.P. Miller , quit the film and broke off his relationship with the producers and being hired Ben Maddow who wrote the script based on the novel written by Alan LeMay . Glittering and shimmer cinematography is perfectly reflected on spectacular outdoors and colorful interiors by cameraman Franz Planer , though Oswald Morris says in his memoirs he was offered this film. Emotive as well as thrilling musical score by the classic Dimitri Tiomkin .
The motion picture was compellingly directed by John Huston who saw the film as an opportunity to make a serious comment on race relations, but the company thought anything along those lines should take a back seat to making it a commercial success as action/adventure . The flick was made in a good time of the 50s and 60s when Huston resurged as a filmmaker of quality films and with the momentum in his favor, as John hung around in Hollywood this time to write and/or direct some of the finest American cinema made including The African Queen , The jungle of asphalt (1950), Red badge of courage (1951) ,Moulin Rouge (1952), Moby Dick (1956), The unforgiven (1960), Misfits (1961), Freud (1962), The night of the iguana (1964) , they were for the most part, well-regarded but certainly not close to the level of his earlier revered work . He also experimented behind-the-camera with colour effects and approached topics that most others would not even broach, including thought-provoking themes and psychoanalysis . He subsequently directed successes such as Fat City, (1972 ), The man who would be king (1975) and Wise blood (1979). He ended his career on a high note with Under volcano (1984), Honor of Prizzi (1985) and Dublineses (1987). Rating : 7'5 above average , worthwhile watching . This odd western , ¨The unforgiven¨ , is one of John Huston's main films , a model of his kind , definitely a must see if you are aficionado to Western film . Huston broke a new ground with this landmark movie , providing exciting scenes and unforgettable dialogs .
