ThiefHott Too much of everything

Btexxamar I like Black Panther, but I didn't like this movie.

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Cristal The movie really just wants to entertain people.

jeremy3 A trapper, played by Victor Mature, ends up at a Union Army fort confronted by Red Cloud and his army. The trapper falls for the wife of the colonel of the fort. The colonel is a very dedicated and brave soldier, but not very diplomatic and smart when it comes to choosing battles. The trapper lures the colonel out into the woods and gets him entrapped in a pit and leaves him to die. The trapper in his delusions hopes that the colonel's wife will be impressed and want to be with him. Instead, her Christian sensibility is horrified by his actions. The trapper goes back and rescues the colonel. The movie is "war weary". The soldiers at the fort are sick of fighting the local Native Americans and not happy about going out to fight a battle they will inevitably lose. The trapper becomes a hero to them, because he is an excellent fighter and much shrewder than the colonel. The colonel is both liked and disliked. He is a loyal soldier, but the soldiers are not happy about having to go out and fight to their inevitable deaths. I think this was the best thing about this movie. It was not a typical western. It was a rare 50s movie that was more cynical about war and the point of war.

Jazzer65 One that passed me by I think, my loss. Excellent film to me, the cast demonstrate that the training they got all those years ago works. Today, nothing going on behind the eyes. Too many who are slaves to their mirrors and hairdresser. No reactors: all waiting for their line. Too many who think a spell on big brother will do for training.A good story , well told, If this film comes around and you thought it was a run of the mill western, try it, you may enjoy it.I don't know who the Hollywood studio trumpeter was, who did most of the bugle calls, the 'accidental' jazz like phrasing and superb sound was worth a grin ... perhaps Conrad Gozzo. That's the sort of blooper I like.I am getting a little tired of being offered the same film over and over again with the usual monosyllabic dialogue, obligatory car crash and so on this for me was everything I miss about Hollywood.

jarrodmcdonald-1 I feel as if Victor Mature is vastly underrated and gives one of his finest performances in this Columbia western. Maybe it's because of Anthony Mann's direction, or the key scenes he has with Anne Bancroft as the married woman who is the object of his savage affections. But he's also quite splendid in scenes with Guy Madison and James Whitmore, especially with Whitmore. It's like two things are happening with Vic here-- he's having the time of his life with the other members of the cast, and he's thrown himself so completely into playing the part of an undisciplined trapper that he's practically possessed. He has several tirades in this film, often in long takes, and Mann wisely lets the camera go after him. It's most absorbing.We also have Robert Preston playing Bancroft's husband, a bloodthirsty commanding officer. You would nearly expect Vic's larger than life portrayal to push the other players off to the sidelines. But Preston brings his own intensity, a spectacular version of a deranged leader, right up through the center of this story. So we have Vic clowning around in alcohol-induced rants, and Preston forging ahead to commit a series of pre-meditated killings, involving both the enemy natives and his own soldiers. Two train wrecks happening at once, and it's no wonder viewers cannot take their eyes off the screen.It was one of the year's top grossing films when it was released back in the mid-1950s. Audiences devoured it whole. If this film was released first-run today, it would still be a smash hit.

MartinHafer This film is set in Oregon during the Civil War. Three trappers (Victor Mature, James Whitmore and Pat Hogan) are dismayed to see that the once-friendly Indian tribe is now angry and are throwing them of the land. This is because the natives are angry that the US Cavalry has been building forts and it's their land.When the trappers go to the nearby fort to complain, they are hired as scouts--mostly because Mature likes the Captain in charge (Guy Madison). However, later, a STUPID Colonel arrives and pretty much ignores Mature's advice. The Colonel (Robert Preston) wants to just blunder into an attack on the Indians--though Mature tells him it's suicide. Why? Because he's afraid being assigned to the wilderness means no medals and promotions in the war. And so, he seems ready to start one himself! What makes this more complicated is that Mature is a bit of a crazy savage. In the meantime, he's fallen inexplicably in love with the Colonel's wife and wants her. And, part of him would be very happy to let the Colonel kill himself so he could have her! The film is interesting and looks nice due to the color film and nice locations in the Pacific Northwest. However, Mature's alcohol-fueled character seemed rather broad--a bit too much like a savage to seem very real. Subtle, he wasn't! Overall, I'd say the film has a bit to like and a bit to annoy. Parts of the film are highly reminiscent of John Ford's "Fort Apache"--but Apache was a masterpiece of subtlety, fine acting and an artisan's touch. "The Last Frontier" is just a bit loud and the characters rather confusing. Interesting but quite flawed and despite the pretty look of the film, it comes off more like a B-movie than anything else.One thing I really, really appreciated about the film was the casting of Pat Hogan. It's rare for a REAL American-Indian to be cast as an Indian in a 1950s western--especially in a major role. He was an Oklahoma-born Native American and not some white guy in dark makeup. For example, Rock Hudson (yes, I am NOT kidding) was cast as an Indian during this same era!