The Plainsman

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Plainsman is a 1936 Western movie directed by Cecil B. DeMille that presents a highly fictionalized account of the adventures and relationships between Wild Bill Hickok (Gary Cooper), Calamity Jane (Jean Arthur), Buffalo Bill Cody and General George Custer with a gun-runner named Lattimore (Charles Bickford) as the main villain. The film is notorious for mixing timelines and even has on opening scene with Abraham Lincoln setting the stage for Hickock's adventures. Anthony Quinn has a cameo as an Indian.

[edit] Plot

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

With the end of the American civil war, the military industrialists are left with an oversupply of weapons. Some of the more unscrupulous ones view the Indians as possible new customers.

Having been just discharged from the Union Army, Wild Bill Hickok is making his way back west. On a paddle steamer, he bumps into his old army scout colleague, Buffalo Bill Cody and Codys' new bride. Once off board, they find that Calamity Jane is the driver of their stagecoach to Hays, Kansas.

Lattimore, an agent for the industrialists, has supplied the Cheyenne Indians with repeating rifles and this has enabled them to kill half of the troopers within an U.S. Calvary outpost. Hickok finds out about rifles and reports it to General Custer. Custer sends out a resupply mule train to the fort with Cody as guide. Hickok tries to locate Yellow Hand, the Cheyenne chieftain, to find out why the Indians have gone to war. When Calamity Jane gets captured by the Indians, Hickok tries to bargain for her release but instead gets captured himself. In the only scene sympathetic to the Indian's plight, Yellow Hand states that the Indians are fighting as the white man has starting settling land promised to the Indian and the white man was killing off the buffalo. Yellow Hand, states that he must find out about the location of the resupply train and he promises to release them if he does. After much prodding from Jane, Hickok professes his love for her just before he is about to be tortured. Calamity Jane discloses the route of the resupply train to the Indians in order to save Hickok from being burned alive. Yellow Hand holds true to his word by releasing his two prisoners. The Indians attack the resupply train, but Hickok sends Jane to get reinforcements while he fights along with the besieged soldiers. After a desperate six day siege on a river bank, the survivers are saved when Custer arrives with the calvary.

Back in town, Hickok catches up with Lattimore and tells him to get ready for a gun duel. Instead of going himself, Lattimore sends three calvary deserters in his place. Hickok kills all three deserters in the gunfight, but this causes him to be a fugitive. Running from the law, Hickok goes to the Dakota Territory. Calamity Jane leaves for Deadwood separately as the townspeople had found out that she was partly responsible for the attack on the supply train.

Custer sends Cody to chase after Hickok. After meeting in the woods, the two friends capture an Indian. From the Indian, they find out that Custer has been killed at Battle of the Little Bighorn and that the Cheyenne Indians are moving to meet up with the Sioux Indians in the Black Hills. They also learn that Lattimore is sending more rifles to the Indians, to be picked up at town of Deadwood. Instead of arresting his friend, Cody rides off to warn the calvary and he also allows Hickok to go to Deadwood to deal with Lattimore. Once in Deadwood, Hickok kills Lattimore and then detains Lattimore's henchman so they can be arrested by the calvary. Hickok is shot in the back by Lattimore's informant while he is playing cards with the henchmen. The film ends with Calamity Jane cradling Hickoks' body.