Ok, I only remember bits about this, but the story of this movie is LEGENDARY and haunts my family to this day.
My Dad, Mom, uncle, and I was staying at a Day’s Inn in Cincinnati, OH in 1982 and we watched a movie that had an ending that made my Dad so angry, that he still gets pissed off if anyone even mentions it to this day.
All that I can remember about it is that it was a western from the 60s or 70s about a man who was stranded in the desert and went through he’ll to get back to his fort, only to get there and be shot and killed by his own men by mistake.
Only other details that I can remember is that I think he either fell into or was dragged through a bunch of cacti (cactuses?) and seems like he was blonde, but I’m not 100% sure about that. Also, seems like he was a calvary soldier that was the last survivor of an indian attack, maybe?
Any help figuring this out would be great. None of us knew the name of it when we watched it originally, and it’s haunted me for 40+ years.
I’d love to buy a copy of it for my Dad for Father’s Day! Lol.
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We were on our way to King’s Island.
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Not a perfect fit, but… Hang ‘Em High?
Here’s a few possibilities: Man in the Wilderness (1971), Fort Massacre (1958), Soldier Blue (1970).
The ballad of cable hogue?
Death of a gunfighter? (1969)
Deadlock (1970)
The Last Hunt (1956)?
Maybe The Deserter or Jeremiah Johnson?
This guess is a little out there, because it isn’t the American west. “Cast a Giant Shadow” is a movie starring Kirk Douglas portraying Col. Mickey Marcus who organized the fledgling Israeli army in 1948. He was killed by friendly fire because his Hebrew was limited, and he did not respond properly when he was challenged on his approach to a guarded position.
There Was a Crooked Man…? – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_Was_a_Crooked_Man…_(1970_film)
Check out Blood on the Arrow, 1964. It’s free on Tubi.
I think it might be your movie!
Dale Robertson portrays Wade Cooper, a U.S. Cavalry prisoner who survives an Apache ambush that decimates his patrol. Left for dead in the desert, Cooper endures extreme hardships—including severe injuries and exposure—before making his way back to a trading post near a fort. Tragically, upon reaching the fort, he is mistakenly shot and killed by his own men.
“The Deserter (1970)” maybe?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Deserter_(1970_film)