After the South loses the war, Confederate veteran O'Meara goes West, joins the Sioux, takes a wife and refuses to be an American but he must choose a side when the Sioux go to war against t... Read allAfter the South loses the war, Confederate veteran O'Meara goes West, joins the Sioux, takes a wife and refuses to be an American but he must choose a side when the Sioux go to war against the U.S. Army.After the South loses the war, Confederate veteran O'Meara goes West, joins the Sioux, takes a wife and refuses to be an American but he must choose a side when the Sioux go to war against the U.S. Army.
- Yellow Moccasin
- (as Sarita Montiel)
- Red Cloud
- (as Frank De Kova)
- Gen. Allen
- (as Colonel Tim McCoy)
- Gen. Ulysses S. Grant
- (uncredited)
- Gen. Robert E. Lee
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAt the time of its release, many critics commented favorably on director Samuel Fuller's artistic decision to concentrate on the feet of the participants in the "run of the arrow" rather than showing them in their entirety. In an interview, Fuller said there was a very simple reason for his decision: star Rod Steiger had badly sprained his ankle just before the scene was to be shot and wasn't able to walk, let alone run, so Fuller got one of the Indian extras who was built somewhat like Steiger to run in his place, which is why he shot only feet instead of close-ups or medium shots.
- GoofsThe bulk of the film is in a very arid desert area, not the landscape in Sioux territory.
- Quotes
Pvt. O'Meara, 6th Virginia Volunteers Sharpshooter: [Sick with fever, approaches the tribe] I wish... I wish to speak to your chief Blue Buffalo...
Blue Buffalo: [Rising from the ground where he was squatting] I'm Blue Buffalo!
Pvt. O'Meara, 6th Virginia Volunteers Sharpshooter: I've lived the Run of the Arrow!
Blue Buffalo: [Blue buffalo has a warrior check O'Meara's feet and addresses Crazy Wolf] Is this the man that out ran you?
Crazy Wolf: Yes.
Blue Buffalo: [Addressing O'Meara] You are the first to outlive the Run. You will never die by the hand of a Sioux for this. Give him back his horse and everything else that belongs to him. I don't understand. you speak Sioux like Sioux not like a white man.
Pvt. O'Meara, 6th Virginia Volunteers Sharpshooter: My teacher was Walking Coyote.
Blue Buffalo: That poor renegade.
[as Blue Buffalo says this ,O'Meara collapses and faints]
Crazy Wolf: [Crazy Wolf checks on him] He's sick with the fever!
Blue Buffalo: [Addressing the village] Our law prevents us from killing any man who lives the Run. But we have no law to help him live. The choice is yours. Who among you will help him thru the night?
Yellow Moccasin: I will. I will help him thru the night.
- Crazy creditsThe movie closes with the following statement: "The end of this story can only be written by you."
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Typewriter, the Rifle & the Movie Camera (1996)
Like John Wayne's Ethan Edwards from The Searchers, Steiger doesn't believe in surrenders and won't accept the Union victory and domination over the south. But unlike Edwards Steiger's Clay O'Meara has no problem with the Sioux or any other Indians. He goes into their country and after passing a brutal initiation from the Indians with a little bit of help he's accepted into the tribe.
Eventually the Union blue reaches the Sioux country and Steiger is part of the negotiating team and guides the cavalry to land where they will build a fort safe from Indian hunting grounds. Extremists on both sides make the peace impossible, H.M. Wynant for the Sioux and Lieutenant Ralph Meeker for the whites. Eventually Steiger makes a choice and he faces a most uncertain future.
The Indians are nicely played albeit by white players such as Charles Bronson as the chief. Sarita Montiel of the Mexican cinema plays the Indian woman whom Steiger takes in wedlock. Brian Keith has a nice part as a sympathetic army captain. But who I would have liked to see more of are Olive Carey as Steiger's mother and Jay C. Flippen as the philosophical Indian scout who comes back to die among his people. I wish Flippen hadn't died so soon.
A certain kind of cosmic justice is meted out to one of the cast at the conclusion. You'll have to sit and enjoy watching Run Of The Arrow to know what I mean.
- bkoganbing
- Nov 20, 2011
- Permalink
- How long is Run of the Arrow?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Runtime1 hour 26 minutes