''The Command'' is a 1954 American

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic format, anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its cr ...

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 directed by David Butler. It stars Guy Madison and

James Whitmore James Allen Whitmore Jr. (October 1, 1921 – February 6, 2009) was an American actor. He received numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Theatre World Award, and a Tony Award, plus two Ac ...

. It was based on the novel ''Rear Guard'' by James Warner Bellah and features a screenplay by Sam Fuller.

Plot

When the commanding officer of a cavalry patrol is wounded and dying, he asks the patrol's surviving ranking officer, an army doctor, to take over and lead the patrol back to their fort. On the way back to their fort, the cavalry troop passes a town where two companies of infantry troops commanded by a colonel are temporarily taking a breather from their duty of escorting a wagon train of settlers. When the colonel learns of the presence of the cavalry troop, he orders the attachment of the cavalry troop to his command with the specific duty of screening the main body of infantry troops and the wagon train. This attachment results in the cavalry troop being involved in several encounters with the native Indians who keep attacking the wagon train. During the trip, the colonel suffers a mild heart attack and is now unable to command. The infantry officers ask the cavalry officer to take over command from the incapacitated infantry colonel. The cavalry doctor-officer takes over and leads the combined troops of infantry and cavalry in defeating the Indians.

Cast

* Guy Madison as Capt. Robert MacClaw * Carl Benton Reid as Col. Janeway * Joan Weldon as Martha Cutting * Don Shelton as Maj. Gibbs * Gregg Barton as Capt. Forsythe * Robert Nichols as 2nd Lt. O'Hirons *

as 1st Sgt. Elliot * Boyd 'Red' Morgan as Cpl. Fleming * Harvey Lembeck as Pvt. Gottschalk

Production

The film was originally due to star

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, silent screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, ...

under the title ''Rear Guard''. The film was announced to be made in 3-D but Warner Bros. later announced that it was to be made in WarnerSuperScope using Warner's new All-Media camera with no mention of 3-D. Warner Bros. also announced a deal with Zeiss Opton to produce lenses for them but ''The Command'' was the only Warner Bros. film to use them. Warner's camera and new system was never used and ''The Command'' was shot in Vistarama although, in agreement with

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

, it was publicly released as Warner's first film in

. It was also the first Western to be billed as in CinemaScope.

References

External links

* * * 1954 films 1954 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films Films based on American novels Films based on Western (genre) novels Films directed by David Butler Films scored by Dimitri Tiomkin Warner Bros. films Western (genre) cavalry films CinemaScope films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films English-language Western (genre) films {{1950s-US-Western-film-stub