Well… my nation… fought… for liberty against the United States… And Christianity is always the brother of liberty in all wars. – The Run of the Arrow (1957)
Run of the Arrow (1957) – Samuel Fuller’s Most Underrated Film?
Having once turned his back on his country to fight for the South, a man rejects the reformed Union to live as a Sioux in this post-Civil War drama. But can a man truly turn his back on what he was for a new life, or will events pull him back in? This Samuel Fuller-directed adventure, written by him, is a combination of Colter’s Run, which I talked about extensively in The Naked Prey (1965), The Most Dangerous Game (1932), A Man Called Horse (1970), and Dances with Wolves (1990).
Hello to all the classic people who are returning. I am glad you are back. I want to welcome any new visitors. Today on Classic Movie Review, we are taking on the Samuel Fuller-written and -directed Western Run of the Arrow (1957).
Before Samuel Fuller ever called “action,” he was chasing stories as a teenage crime reporter. Then he served in the infantry during World War II, seeing the horrors of combat, Fuller witnessed firsthand the inhumanity of the world. Samuel Fuller didn’t just direct films—he grabbed Hollywood by the collar. He compelled us to examine the grit, violence, and contradictions of American life. His stories weren’t always pretty, but they were always honest.
Run of the Arrow (1957) features a great cast, led by the always intense Rod Steiger. The action is gritty and well filmed. On IMDb.com, this film has a relatively low rating of 6.6. It barely exists on RottenTomatoes.com, with no Tomatometer score and only a 57 percent audience score[1]. I can tell you right now and for sure – this film is better than its ratings.
Cranky old New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther said in part in an August 3, 1957 review:
“…Meanwhile, what’s with our turncoat? Well, the cavalry blame him at first, and that damn Yankee he all but killed at Appomattox is all for stringing him up. But then the Indians arrive, take over and are skinning the damn Yankee alive, which so horrifies our ex-Confederate that he—guess what! Don’t expect “Fort Apache.” This is just an ordinary cavalry-Indian film, conspicuous for a lot of raw blood-letting and the appearance of Rod Steiger in the leading role. Mr. Steiger, familiar as a sullen tough guy in a number of gangster films, slightly overworks the Actors Studio method out there on the dusty frontier. But Ralph Meeker as the snarling damn Yankee, Brian Keith as a hard-pants cavalryman and J. C. Flippen as a Sioux in a black wig are in conventional Western form. Mr. Fuller, who wrote, produced and directed, has in no way broken the familiar mold.”[2]
Well, I certainly think the film is better than a standard Western, but at least no one is saying it is less than a standard Western.
We have a lot of amazing actors in this film, so let’s jump right in.
Actors – Run of the Arrow (1957)
Returning
Rod Steiger played O’Meara, an Irish descendant ex-Confederate turned Sioux warrior. This great and very intense method actor was first covered in the hard-hitting, sweet science Film Noir The Harder They Fall (1956). Steiger is masterful at playing evil characters, but in today’s film, he channeled it all into playing an angry man.
Ralph Meeker was tolerable as Union cavalry Lt. Driscoll. Meeker was first covered in the Film Noir Kiss Me Deadly (1955), where he was absolutely amazing. However, he rarely reached that bar in his other films, except for Paths of Glory (1957).
Jay C. Flippen played Walking Coyote, a Sioux outcast who took on the role of cultural and language teacher to O’Meara as they traveled the west before arriving in Sioux territory. Flippen was first covered in the Western Comedy Cat Ballou (1965). Still, you may remember him as the wheelchair-bound ex-firefighter in Hellfighters (1968).
Charles Bronson played Sioux warrior Blue Buffalo, and he was ripped as hell. Bronson was first covered in what I consider to be one of his greatest films, the New Orleans-based street fighter adventure Hard Times (1975).
Brian Keith has a relatively small part as Union cavalry Capt. Clark. His character was calm and measured, serving as a great counterpoint to the other cast members. Keith was first covered in the exciting Western The Violent Men (1955).
Veteran director John Ford and John Wayne stock crew member Olive Carey played Mrs. O’Meara, the main character’s mother, and was only present in the film briefly. This wife and mother of Western actors was first covered in the campy Horror Western Billy the Kid Versus Dracula (1966).
Carleton Young was uncredited as a Confederate surgeon who played a pivotal role in the story, albeit briefly, in the movie. Young was first covered in the great Western, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962).
New
Frank DeKova was cast as Chief Red Cloud. DeKova was born in 1910 in New York City. He began working as a teacher but later changed to acting on stage. After working in many Shakespeare productions, DeKova was cast on Broadway, eventually appearing in the play “Detective Story.”
This was enough to get him acting work in Hollywood. Viva Zapata! (1952) is often cited as his first film role, but he may have appeared as an uncredited convict in Kiss of Death (1947). Due to his sharp features and intense eyes, DeKova made a career of playing criminals, Indians, cowboys, and other “ethnic” races. He was in his share of Film Noirs, including Hold Back Tomorrow (1955) and Shack Out On 101 (1955). DeKova was in the biblical epic The Ten Commandments (1956).
Some rare standouts include the Roger Corman Teenage Cave Man (1958) and the Elvis Presley comedy Follow That Dream (1962). This is the vein through which I most think of DeKova, as I grew up watching him as the wacky Hekawi Chief Wild Eagle in 63 episodes of “F Troop” from 1965 to 1967.
DeKova was so good at playing bad guys that he was cast as “The Man” in Charles Bronson’s The Mechanic (1972). He also voiced one of the characters in the innovative animation film American Pop (1981). DeKova died in his sleep in 1981.
Spanish actress Sara Montiel was cast as Sioux tribe member, Yellow Moccasin. She was born in Spain in 1928. Montiel won a beauty contest and was signed to a Spanish movie contract in 1944. She made 14 films in the following four years and was signed to a long-term acting contract in Mexico. She became very popular and made over 12 films from 1950 to 1954.
Montiel began acting in American movies, such as Vera Cruz (1954), starring Gary Cooper, Serenade (1956), directed by her future husband, Anthony Mann, and the film we are discussing today, Run of the Arrow (1957). She also appeared in a Spanish film titled El último cuplé (1957). This film turned out to be the largest-grossing film in the history of the Spanish movie industry.
The money was too good to pass up, so Montiel returned to Europe, where she worked in film until 1974. She also took on stage work as well as a television mini-series. Montiel is viewed as a superstar in Spain and has received numerous awards. She also released some albums. Montiel died in 2013.
Story – Run of the Arrow (1957)
This movie begins by showing dead Union and Confederate soldiers on a battlefield in Appomattox, Virginia. It is Palm Sunday, April 9, 1865, and the crawl says it is the last day of the War Between the States. I have some major concerns with this that I will address in the conclusion. But for now, on with the story.
An exhausted Union Cavalry officer, Lt. Driscoll (Ralph Meeker), is riding across an open field. A shot rings out, and Driscoll falls from his horse. The shooter is Confederate O’Meara (Rod Steiger). Driscoll is laid out with feet crossed in a Christ on the cross pose. O’Meara searches the body and finds a small packet of food. He eats some of the food but then realizes the man he shot is still alive. He loads the wounded man on the horse and takes him to a Confederate field hospital.
A Confederate surgeon (Carleton Young) begins working on the wounded Driscoll. O’Meara sees Traveler, General Lee’s horse, tied outside what would be the McLean house in the village of Appomattox, Virginia. The surgeon says that Lee is surrendering to Union General Grant.
As a historical aside, Wilmer McLean lived near Bull Run at the beginning of the war, and part of the battle occurred on his property. For safety, he moved his family to Appomattox. Four years later, the surrender of most of the Confederates took place at Appomattox. This led to an often-stated phrase: the war began in McLean’s backyard and ended in his parlor.
Lee and Grant come outside, and O’Meara takes aim to shoot Grant. The surgeon tells O’Meara he would have to shoot Lee as well because the shame of Grant being killed after the surrender would kill Lee as well. Both times O’Meara’s gun is shown, it is a rifled musket with a ramrod. I will discuss this further in the conclusions. The surgeon removed the bullet from Driscoll’s chest and gives it to O’Meara.
Sometime later, a Confederate veteran is singing about how he will not be reconstructed. He meets with O’Meara and says that General Lee begged the president for pardons. He then presents O’Meara with an engraved bullet. The friend of O’Meara had gotten the bullet from Mrs. O’Meara. The lead part of the bullet is recast from the bullet pulled from Driscoll’s body. The bullet is a cased, rimmed, and breech-loading round. More about this at the end.
O’Meara’s mother (Olive Carey) comes to tell her son to accept the peace and pardons that have been offered. O’Meara disparages the assassinated President Lincoln and is ashamed of Lee for surrendering. O’Meara can’t let go of the hate as he talks about the deaths his family has endured. O’Meara says he will head west. His mother tells him he can’t run from this problem.
Later on, we see that O’Meara has made it to the west. He sees a swarm of buzzards and rides to investigate. He finds a horse and an old man. The man is Walking Coyote (Jay C. Flippen), an Oglala Sioux. And he has a bad wig on. Walking Coyote tells O’Meara that he has worked as a scout for the U.S. Army and is heading home to die because his heart is failing. Walking Coyote definitely has a mocking humor. The pair decide to travel on together.
During the trip, Walking Coyote teaches O’Meara the Sioux language and customs. He also gives a pretty good history class as well. O’Meara says he wants to be a Sioux. After they have been together for some time, they see rock cairns and a platform burial. They hear guns firing and ride to see a group of Sioux attacking a wagon. They are immediately captured by the attackers.
The leader of the war party, Crazy Wolf (H.M. Wynant), immediately hates O‘Meara because he is white. He has the same hate for Walking Coyote because he worked as a scout for the whites. Walking Coyote wants to be taken before Blue Buffalo (Charles Bronson). Still, Crazy Wolf says he will determine the captive’s fate.
The warriors tie O‘Meara and Walking Coyote to a big rock while they get drunk and mean. They plan on hanging Walking Coyote so he won’t be able to go to heaven, but O’Meara is to be skinned alive. At the last minute, Walking Coyote invokes the right of the run of the arrow.
Honor-bound to accept the request, Crazy Wolf shoots an arrow a great distance. Like all of these film ordeals, the prey is safe until they reach the fired arrow or thrown spear. When they have a head start, the chase begins. Anyone who violates the run of the arrow will suffer a horrible death.
Both O‘Meara and Walking Coyote are barefoot and don’t have much of a chance. Walking Coyote is sacrificing his life to give O’Meara a chance. Walking Coyote mentions that no one has ever survived the run.
Much of the filming of the run focuses on the feet. At the time of the film’s release, many critics complemented director Fuller for the artistic choice of focusing on the feet. However, Fuller said in a later interview that Rod Steiger had sprained his ankle before the run was shot, so he used a stunt double and focused closely on shots of the feet, with many medium shots.
The warriors soon catch Walking Coyote and taunt him as they pass. Finally, the old man dies of a heart attack. This gives O’Meara a slight advantage. O’Meara drops from exhaustion near a group of Sioux women. One of the women, Yellow Moccasin (Sara Montiel), hides O’Meara on a travois. When Crazy Wolf arrives, none of the women will tell if they have seen the white man. It doesn’t really say why they would take this chance.
Yellow Moccasin hides O’Meara in her teepee, where she lives with a mute boy named Silent Tongue (Billy Miller). O’Meara is delirious, and Yellow Moccasin tends to his wounds. As soon as he is able to walk, O’Meara goes to the local chief, Blue Buffalo.
O’Meara says he has lived the run of the arrow. They are all impressed at how well O’Meara speaks Sioux. O’Meara passes out from fever, and Yellow Moccasin volunteers to tend the sick man. All night long, O’Meara shouts about the horrors he has seen in war.
Over time, O’Meara, Yellow Moccasin, and Silent Tongue become like a family. O’Meara gives Silent Tongue a harmonica, and the boy can make sound for the first time.
Because O’Meara has survived the run, Blue Buffalo says no Sioux may harm him. O’Meara asks to be part of the tribe, marry Yellow Moccasin, and adopt Silent Tongue. O’Meara says he is a Sioux and will kill Americans if need be. However, he does say he is a Christian and must live by the Christian rules. Blue Buffalo asks more questions and determines that the Christian God is the same as the Great Spirit. O’Meara is accepted. Sometime after they are married, O’Meara reveals that he wears the last bullet he shot in the war in a bag around his neck as if it were a traditional medicine bag.
A now healed Union soldier, Lt. Driscoll, is in charge of a cavalry troop. He reports to a Colonel for escort duty of a group of engineers who will be building a new Army post if General Allen and the overall Sioux leader, Red Cloud (Frank DeKova), can reach an agreement. Lt. Driscoll is gung-ho to fight and doesn’t like to negotiate. Capt. Clark (Brian Keith) will be in charge of the building mission. Lt. Driscoll brags about how well cavalry can fight against Indians, and the Colonel mentions the Fetterman Fight. In 1866, during the Red Cloud War, Captain Fetterman led 81 troops into an ambush in Wyoming. All of the U.S. soldiers were killed.[3] Lt. Driscoll thinks cavalry would have made the difference because Fetterman’s men were infantry. Capt. Clark says to the Colonel that Lt. Driscoll is one of many Custers in the Army. Of course, Custer didn’t meet his end until 1876.
Red Cloud and a large delegation come to the Army camp to negotiate a deal. Red Cloud ensures the Army that the new fort will not affect their hunting grounds. Red Cloud says he will send a scout to work with them, and winds up sending O’Meara. General Alan agrees. O’Meara makes it clear he is working for the Sioux because he is a Sioux. He recognizes Lt. Driscoll from when he shot him at Appomattox. Lt. Driscoll then finds out that O’Meara took his horse after he shot him. The two men do not care for each other or for their politics.
Yellow Moccasin and Silent Tongue go on the expedition as well. She asks O’Meara why he saved an enemy and says it wasn’t very Sioux-like. He tells her he doesn’t know why he did it either. After this meeting, the group of cavalry, scouts, and wagons head to the chosen site.
Crazy Wolf watches the column from a distance. One day, he fires a flaming arrow into the back of a trooper. O’Meara identifies the arrow as being from Crazy Wolf. A Sergeant (Chuck Roberson) wants to hang O’Meara and Yellow Moccasin, saying they are the enemy. Lt. Driscoll wants to attack any Indians he can find. Still, Capt. Clark believes O’Meara when he says Crazy Wolf is a renegade. Lt. Driscoll calls Capt. Clark an Indian lover to his face. He doesn’t get smacked down for the comment, but it seems to be coming.
Later on, they end up camping by a river, and O’Meara warns everyone to stay away from the quicksand. Before long, Silent Tongue falls into the quicksand. He blows frantically on the harmonica until the Sergeant from earlier, without thought, rushes to save the boy. As he pulls the boy to safety, the Sergeant falls in face-first and loses his own life.
Capt. Clark and O’Meara have a long talk about the war, but they do skip over the real issues of slavery. When O’Meara says he wants a free, white, and Christian country, Capt. Clark reminds him about the whole problem with the Ku Klux Klan.
O’Meara questions why the Sergeant would save an enemy. Capt. Clark discusses the concept of belonging and recounts the story of Philip Nolan, the man without a country. I have to take a long historical detour, but it will be worth it in the end.
The story of Philip Nolan, also known as “The Man Without a Country,” was a fictional tale by Edward Everett Hale that appeared in The Atlantic in December 1863. The story contains some true elements, and the entire narrative is often erroneously believed to be true.
In the story, Philip Nolan is on trial for treason related to some Aaron Burr shenanigans. During the trial, Nolan shouts, “Damn the United States! I wish I may never hear of the United States again!” For this outburst, he is sentenced to spend the remainder of his life at sea, never being allowed to hear or read about the United States. After fifty years, and near death, a Captain tells him the history of the U.S., a country that Nolan has grown to love. When Nolan dies, he is buried at sea.
The problem is that it never happened. Historical Aaron Burr ended his term as Vice President in 1805. He leased 40,000 acres from the Spanish in what would become the state of Louisiana. Burr was associated with the governor of the Louisiana Territory, General James Wilkinson, who was also Commander-in-Chief of the United States Army at New Orleans. Burr recruited volunteers to settle his land.
Burr claimed the settlement would place a group of Americans in a strategic location if war with Spain broke out. However, he may have been trying to help Mexico succeed from Spain. As trouble with Spain brewed, General Wilkinson, who was later found to be a paid agent of Spain, reported to the U.S. government that Burr was attempting to create his own kingdom. President Jefferson issued an arrest warrant for Burr with a charge of treason.
Burr was brought to trial in 1807 and was eventually found not guilty. Burr lived in England for several years before returning to New York. He died there in 1836.
Also true is that a man named Philip Nolan was the secretary and bookkeeper for General Wilkinson. However, Nolan was killed by the Spanish Army in 1801 while stealing horses in Tejas, long before Burr was arrested.
The play on names, Nolan and No Land, is pretty lyrical.
Continuing with true events, the story was published in 1863, long after Burr and Nolan were dead. A silent film adaptation of the story was released as The Man Without a Country (1917) by Thanhouser Film Corporation. A lost film, The Man Without a Country (1925), was released by the Fox Film Corporation.
A third version of the film, titled The Man Without a Country (1937), was released in color and directed by Crane Wilbur. Holmes Herbert was in the 1917 and 1925 films. The 1925 film also featured Gloria Holden. Of course, she would go on to be the lead in Dracula’s Daughter (1936).
However, the film I remember is the made-for-television “The Man Without a Country” 1973 starring Cliff Robertson. This film emerged during the rising tide of patriotism as the country neared our bicentennial. As I remember, it was a very good movie and generated a lot of sympathy for the fictional character.
So, back to today’s movie.
O’Meara delivers Capt. Clark and the other men to the construction site. Crazy Wolf is still stalking the column. Lt. Driscoll declares the location to be unacceptable. He becomes insubordinate and Capt. Clark threatens to have him shoveling mule poop.
O’Meara and Capt. Clark are becoming friendly with each other. O’Meara and his family are preparing to leave when word comes in that the wood chopping party has been attacked. Some men have been killed, others are wounded, and one soldier was captured.
Lt. Driscoll is complaining about O’Meara when Crazy Wolf shoots an arrow into the chest of Capt. Clark. Before Clark dies, he tells Lt. Driscoll, who is now in charge, not to use him to start a war.
O’Meara rides out after Crazy Wolf, and near the same time, Lt. Driscoll shoots, hitting Crazy Wolf’s horse. O’Meara rides down and captures Crazy Wolf. He forces Crazy Wolf to do the run of the arrow. Lt. Driscoll, not knowing what was going on, shot Crazy Wolf, violating the run of the arrow rules. Lt. Driscoll and O’Meara have a fight, and O’Meara wins.
O’Meara takes Crazy Wolf, who is still alive, to Blue Buffalo and announces that he has killed Americans in the safe area. Meanwhile, Lt. Driscoll informs the soldiers that he plans to relocate the fort to another site. Yellow Moccasin and Silent Tongue take a horse back to the Sioux village.
Lt. Driscoll takes the group to a rocky outcropping outside of the approved area to build the fort. All of the Indians question O’Meara about whether he will kill Americans in battle. He says he is a Sioux, but does not confirm or deny. Yellow Moccasin tells O’Meara he is not a Sioux.
The construction of the fort is progressing fairly well. One day, O’Meara arrives at the fort with a white feather on a spear. He tells Lt. Driscoll he has five minutes to surrender and be escorted out under safe conduct. O’Meara appeals to the men to leave, but one of them clubs him in the back and calls for his hanging.
Just then, a soldier is hit by a flaming arrow. The Indians surround the fort, and Blue Buffalo begins the attack. Most of the soldiers are killed during the attack, as are a number of Sioux. The Indians recover O’Meara and take him off the battlefield. This movie was an early adopter for using blood squibs to simulate realistic bullet impacts, and the battle scenes are pretty gritty.
The Indians burn the fort and all the equipment before catching Lt. Driscoll alive. Crazy Wolf begins to carve Lt. Driscoll for interfering with his run of the arrow. O’Meara cannot stand to hear Lt. Driscoll scream. O’Meara loads the bullet that he first shot Lt. Driscoll with during the Civil War. He shoots and kills Lt. Driscoll for mercy’s sake. Blue Buffalo allows it to happen, knowing O’Meara’s true nature.
Yellow Moccasin tells O’Meara that he is not a Sioux. She gives him the American flag from the fort and says his tribe is there. O’Meara bids farewell to Blue Buffalo and takes the American survivors and wounded back to an American fort. Yellow Moccasin and Silent Tongue go alone as well.
Thanks
Thanks so much for tuning in to this episode of Classic Movie Review! Whether you’re a lifelong fan of Golden Age Hollywood or just discovering the magic of classic cinema, I truly appreciate you taking the time to spend with me. If you enjoyed today’s deep dive, don’t forget to hit that like button, subscribe, and ring the bell so you never miss an episode. And hey—drop a comment below with your favorite classic film or what you’d love to see covered next. I read every one!
Until next time, keep the reels turning and stay classics.
Conclusion – Run of the Arrow (1957)
I mentioned in the Story that the crawl says this was the last battle of the Civil War. When Lee surrendered at Appomattox Courthouse, he only surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia. Joe Johnston surrendered his Army on April 26, and was followed by Kirby Smith’s Army on June 2. More recent scholarship indicates that the last land battle was fought on May 12th and 13th at Palmito Ranch, in Cameron County, Texas. The battle was fought near the Rio Grande east of Brownsville, Texas. [4]
I have actually worked on an archaeological metal detecting survey of this battlefield, and I would like to say the following. The land around Brownsville, Texas, is hell. It is mostly filled with stabbing bushes and a robust diamondback population. I cannot understand why anyone would fight for this, and yet we have two wars that have been carried out in this area.
On the sea, the crew of the Confederate raider the C.S.S. Shenandoah did not find out that the war was over until August 3, 1865, when they were en route to attack San Francisco[5].
The use of the term the War Between the States is hopelessly outdated. I used to call it the War of Northern Aggression, but I have evolved as I age and now refer to it as the late unpleasantness.
People are usually aware that most of the rounds fired in the Civil War were Minié Balls. Oddly, these rounds were neither mini nor balls. The term Minié comes from the designer of these conical bullets that could weigh an ounce or more. The Union forces had breech-loading repeating rifles in use by 1863. Even the Confederates had some, but they were not common.
When O’Meara fires his rifle all three times in the movie, it is shown with a ramrod, indicating that it was muzzle-loaded and fired a Minié ball. The round he was given by his friend back in Virginia was jacketed, primer-fired, and for breech loading. So, wrong bullet.
I have recently watched the musical horror film Sinners (2025), and it has got me thinking about the Irish. Not my people. We have to always keep in mind that Scarlet O’Hara of Gone With the Wind (1939) was Irish. However, she was a rich Irish woman, with her family having come to America prior to the potato famine.
It is never stated when O’Meara’s family arrived in this country. Still, they weren’t rich Irish, meaning they were more likely to have arrived in the mid-1840s. While not a part of the script, I like to think that the O’Meara family first separated from England, carrying that residual hate. Later, they seceded from the Union to form the Confederacy. Finally, O’Meara withdrew from the reformed Union to become a Sioux. At the end, he separated from the Sioux and returned to the Union. If anyone remakes this film, please incorporate the layers of letting go of the old.
Two final small notes. First, the voice of Spanish actress Sara Montiel, who played Yellow Moccasin, was dubbed by the legendary actress Angie Dickinson. Secondly, several knowledgeable film critics, including those from the Los Angeles Times and the Library of Congress, noted that this plot was almost identical to that of Dances With Wolves (1990).
World-Famous Short Summary – Sioux no okay, Sioux yes okay, Sioux maybe squish like grape.
Beware the Moors.
[1] Run of the Arrow | Rotten Tomatoes
[2] Screen: ‘Run of the Arrow’; Steiger ‘Stars in New Film at the Palace – The New York Times
[3] Fetterman Fight – Wikipedia
[4] Battle of Palmito Ranch – Wikipedia
[5] CSS Shenandoah – Wikipedia
