A Distant Trumpet

A decent old-school western, with big landscapes and a big battle sequence at it's centre. It drags in places, and the love triangle sub-plot feels a bit flimsy, but the action sequences are very impressive - hundreds of extras on hundreds of horses, all charging down into a valley for a big ol' dust-up? Exciting stuff. Nowadays it would all be CGI, but here it looks quite majestic.

Walsh's cinematic farewell is a spotty but overall respectable entry into the 'enlightened' Western genre, distinguished by its stunning widescreen cinematography (and scenery) complemented by generally fine performances; Donahue is unfortunately the weak, bland link here. Screenplay feels a little choppy and episodic at times, with a love triangle developed then dropped quickly as the focus shifts to conflicts with the natives. Some spectacular battle scenes towards the climax.