''Shoot the Sun Down'' is a 1978 American Neo-

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film made in the style of

Sergio Leone Sergio Leone (; 3 January 1929 – 30 April 1989) was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter credited as the pioneer of the Spaghetti Western genre and widely regarded as one of the most influential directors in the history of cin ...

. It is directed by David Leeds, written by Leeds and

Richard Rothstein Richard Rothstein is an American academic and author affiliated with the Economic Policy Institute, and a senior fellow (emeritus) at the Thurgood Marshall Institute of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. His current research focuses on the history ...

, and stars

Christopher Walken Christopher Walken (born Ronald Walken; March 31, 1943) is an American actor. Prolific in film, television and on stage, Walken is the recipient of numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Awa ...

Margot Kidder Margaret Ruth Kidder (October 17, 1948 – May 13, 2018), known professionally as Margot Kidder, was a Canadian-American actress whose career spanned five decades. Her accolades include three Canadian Screen Awards and one Daytime Emmy A ...

Geoffrey Lewis Geoffrey Lewis may refer to: * Geoffrey Lewis (actor) (1935–2015), American character actor * Geoffrey Lewis (scholar) (1920–2008), British professor of Turkish * Geoffrey Lewis (philatelist), Australian philatelist * Geoffrey W. Lewis (died ...

Bo Brundin Bo Brundin (25 April 1937 – 4 September 2022) was a Swedish actor. He has appeared in 43 films between 1970 and 2002, and appeared in hit television miniseries such as '' Rich Man, Poor Man'', '' The Rhinemann Exchange'', '' The Word'' and ''C ...

, and

A Martinez Adolfo Larrue Martínez III (born September 27, 1948) is an American actor and singer with roles in the daytime soap operas '' Santa Barbara'', ''General Hospital'', ''One Life to Live'', ''The Bold and the Beautiful'', and ''Days of Our Lives' ...

Plot

In the late 1830s, when much of the Old West was still under

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

governance, four people are traveling through the deserts, north of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

and a three-day ride from Santa Fe. Along with the difficulties of Americans and Spanish Troops, much of the unmonitored areas are controlled by competing tribes of Native Americans such as the

Navajo The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest fe ...

Apache The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño a ...

and

Hopi The Hopi are a Native American ethnic group who primarily live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona, United States. As of the 2010 census, there are 19,338 Hopi in the country. The Hopi Tribe is a sovereign nation within the United ...

. One is the Scalphunter (

), who says his trade is being a "buffaler" ( buffalo hide trader). He is in search of

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...

. The others are a former ship Captain (

), also in search of the gold; the young woman from

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

(

), a former

chambermaid A maid, or housemaid or maidservant, is a female domestic worker. In the Victorian era domestic service was the second largest category of employment in England and Wales, after agricultural work. In developed Western nations, full-time maids ...

who, in exchange for ship's passage to America, has signed an agreement to serve the Captain for five years as an

indentured servant Indentured servitude is a form of Work (human activity), labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract, called an "indenture", may be entered "voluntarily" for purported eventual compensa ...

; and Mr. Rainbow (

), a former Confederate soldier who deserted after being ordered to hunt and kill "Indians." The Captain sets out to find some of Montezuma's gold, risking danger from both the Native Indians and Mexican soldiers. The "Girl" wants to get out of her contract with the Captain and go to

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

and with the help of Mr. Rainbow's and his deal with the Captain. The Scalphunter wants half of the Captain's gold, and tags along with his men and a captured tribe of Native Americans who set out across the desert through the Viaje de la Muerte, the Journey of Death. Sensing competition, the Scalphunter and the Captain align and tie Rainbow to the rocks to die in the heat. They back out on the girl's freedom agreement and leave. An elder of the Tribe frees Rainbow and asks him to save his family and people from the Scalphunter. Rainbow agrees and races across the desert to free the tribe family and the Girl from the control of the Scalphunter and Captain. As they roll a massive golden wheel of Montezuma across the deadly desert, the run into a contingent of Spanish soldiers who threaten to confiscate the wheel of gold and a shoot out ensues with disastrous results for both sides.

Cast

as The Woman *

as Scalphunter *

as Mr. Rainbow *

as Captain *

as Sunbearer *

Sacheen Littlefeather Marie Louise Cruz (November 14, 1946 – October 2, 2022), better known as Sacheen Littlefeather, was an American actress, model, and activist on behalf of Native American civil rights. Littlefeather represented Marlon Brando at the 45th Aca ...

as Navajo Woman

External links

* * 1978 films 1978 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films Films set in the 1830s Films shot in New Mexico Films shot in El Paso, Texas 1970s English-language films 1970s American films {{1970s-Western-film-stub