At first I didn't think much, but as the plot became interesting I decided to stick with it. While I'm far from an expert on the Old West, the commands issued to the troopers seem real. What was more impressive was the detail of the soldiers loading and firing their single shot carbines. That was a nice touch. However, the use of colt pistols seemed wrong - I believe they would have Navy revolvers in the cavalry. I've read that soldiers were on the low end of the social hierarchy in the West and this was represented in the townspeople's attitudes, although in this case they had a specific reason. As far as the acting, I guess I have a soft spot for Forrest Tucker (maybe from watching F-Troop as a kid, as horrible as it was in retrospect.) Chill Wills was a hoot! I liked the way he yelled the commands - took you by surprise. So, all in all not a great film, by any stretch of the imagination, it was worth watching. And seeing the track record of the writer that's not surprising.
8 Reviews
Somewhat better than average oater.
bux4 May 2000
Cameron is capable as the Calvary Commander defending settlers from the Sioux. Much of the story centers on the tension among fellow officers at the outpost. Warren, who directed superbly for Lippert (Little Big Horn 1951)seems to have lost some of his edge in this story, but it is still worth catching.
Pretty good, but not in the same league as Fort Apache
bkoganbing10 June 2013
As Herbert J. Yates of Republic Pictures was losing his stable of cowboy stars to television one way or another, he started doing serious westerns such as this one. Oh! Susanna in which the song is heard over the title credits and not again is a good cavalry western that borrows a great deal from the John Ford classic Fort Apache. They even use the same song about 40 miles a day on beans and hay. And John Ford regular Jack Pennick an old horse cavalryman was technical adviser.
The director was Joseph Kane who cut his teeth on Gene Autry and Roy Rogers features was now branching into more serious work. Like Fort Apache the conflict is between two officers, new commander Lieutenant Colonel Forrest Tucker and Rod Cameron the captain who was in charge of the fort before. Tucker rose through the ranks and he truly hates West Point types like Cameron. Especially those like Cameron who take their orders seriously about keeping settlers out of the Sioux's sacred Black Hills territory. Cameron and Tucker are also rivals for Lorna Gray who works in Jim Davis's saloon and Davis has an interest in her as well. Tucker has no compunction about pulling rank.
In Fort Apache there was a certain poetic nobility invested in both the main characters of John Wayne and Henry Fonda. But John Ford was a poet on the screen. Nothing terribly noble about Tucker in fact he's downright stupid. There's quite a bit of similarity with another Henry Fonda film Mister Roberts with Fonda's rivalry with his captain James Cagney.
A lot of the enlisted men could have easily been drawn from any of John Ford's cavalry film. Chill Wills plays the sergeant assigned to Cameron's platoon who narrates at the beginning and the end and it is his eyes through which the film is seen. This is one of Chill Wills's best screen roles.
If you didn't see the similarities between Fort Apache and Oh! Susanna before the ending is taken right from that film. Fort Apache is one of my favorite westerns and while Oh! Susanna is not in the same league, it's still a pretty good western
The director was Joseph Kane who cut his teeth on Gene Autry and Roy Rogers features was now branching into more serious work. Like Fort Apache the conflict is between two officers, new commander Lieutenant Colonel Forrest Tucker and Rod Cameron the captain who was in charge of the fort before. Tucker rose through the ranks and he truly hates West Point types like Cameron. Especially those like Cameron who take their orders seriously about keeping settlers out of the Sioux's sacred Black Hills territory. Cameron and Tucker are also rivals for Lorna Gray who works in Jim Davis's saloon and Davis has an interest in her as well. Tucker has no compunction about pulling rank.
In Fort Apache there was a certain poetic nobility invested in both the main characters of John Wayne and Henry Fonda. But John Ford was a poet on the screen. Nothing terribly noble about Tucker in fact he's downright stupid. There's quite a bit of similarity with another Henry Fonda film Mister Roberts with Fonda's rivalry with his captain James Cagney.
A lot of the enlisted men could have easily been drawn from any of John Ford's cavalry film. Chill Wills plays the sergeant assigned to Cameron's platoon who narrates at the beginning and the end and it is his eyes through which the film is seen. This is one of Chill Wills's best screen roles.
If you didn't see the similarities between Fort Apache and Oh! Susanna before the ending is taken right from that film. Fort Apache is one of my favorite westerns and while Oh! Susanna is not in the same league, it's still a pretty good western
Oh! what a fun movie
jarrodmcdonald-13 October 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Because I had watched BRIMSTONE recently, which also featured Rod Cameron and Adrian Booth, I thought I would look at another film they did for Republic. So today I viewed a copy of OH! SUSANNA, which was released by the studio a short time later in 1951. The print quality for this title on Amazon Prime is acceptable, and it is worth checking out for several reasons. Aside from the actors (we have a few other BRIMSTONE cast mates on board, including Jim Davis and Forrest Tucker), this film benefits from Joe Kane's smooth direction and the many outdoor sequences that were photographed in Trucolor.
However, what makes OH! SUSANNA remarkable in my opinion is the way the script includes countless action scenes, none of them seeming too contrived. In fact, the massacre at the end of the narrative is quite realistic, and daresay harrowing. I would add that the conflicts are fairly natural, and there are many conflicts occurring. You have to pay close attention, or else you miss important aspects of the story and how these characters' lives intersect and how they vie for power. Adrian Booth is a beauty, and some of the other women in the story who look down their noses at her-- well, they should be ashamed of themselves! See this film. You'll enjoy it, hopefully half as much as I did.
However, what makes OH! SUSANNA remarkable in my opinion is the way the script includes countless action scenes, none of them seeming too contrived. In fact, the massacre at the end of the narrative is quite realistic, and daresay harrowing. I would add that the conflicts are fairly natural, and there are many conflicts occurring. You have to pay close attention, or else you miss important aspects of the story and how these characters' lives intersect and how they vie for power. Adrian Booth is a beauty, and some of the other women in the story who look down their noses at her-- well, they should be ashamed of themselves! See this film. You'll enjoy it, hopefully half as much as I did.
There's Gold in Them Thar Hills!
bsmith555226 September 2017
Warning: Spoilers
"Oh! Susanna" is another of Republic's Trucolor "A" list westerns, this one dealing with the "there's gold in them thar hills" theme.
Set in the Black Hills of Dakota, it has West Pointer Captain Webb Calhoun (Rod Cameron) policing the treaty with the Sioux that prevents settlers and miners from encroaching on Sioux land in search of gold. Calhoun's commanding officer, Lt. Col. Unger (Forrest Tucker complete with greying hair) has risen through the ranks and resents his subordinate's West Point training.
Saloon owner Ira Jordan (Jim Davis) has intentions of starting a war between the army and the Sioux so that the miners can sneak onto Sioux land. He has Unger convinced that the miners should be allowed that access. Working for Jordan is "saloon girl" Lia Wilson (Adrian Booth aka Lorna Gray) with whom Calhoun has a past. Unger also takes an interest in Lia. She in turn, is "carrying on" with shave tail Lt. Cutter (John Compton).
Calhoun continues to warn the trespassers against a possible Sioux attack. The Sioux begin to muster their forces. Unger is lured into a trap through the efforts of Jordan. Calhoun is left to defend the fort with his small troop. The Sioux attack and...........................
The story kind of lags through the first two thirds of the film. It focuses on the conflict between the Cameron and Tucker characters and their completion for the affections of Booth. There is however, a rollicking saloon brawl to break the monotony. The final third of the film deals with the well mounted Indian attack which is the highlight of the story.
Also in the cast are Chill Wills as the tough sergeant, William Ching, Wally Cassell, Marshall Reed, Jimmy Lydon as troopers with Douglas Kennedy and William Haade as the problem troopers. Also along are Charlie Stevens as a scout, and William Bakewell, Ray Teal, Gene Roth, John Merton, Francis McDonald, George Chesbro and Barbara Billingsly in a variety of small roles.
Set in the Black Hills of Dakota, it has West Pointer Captain Webb Calhoun (Rod Cameron) policing the treaty with the Sioux that prevents settlers and miners from encroaching on Sioux land in search of gold. Calhoun's commanding officer, Lt. Col. Unger (Forrest Tucker complete with greying hair) has risen through the ranks and resents his subordinate's West Point training.
Saloon owner Ira Jordan (Jim Davis) has intentions of starting a war between the army and the Sioux so that the miners can sneak onto Sioux land. He has Unger convinced that the miners should be allowed that access. Working for Jordan is "saloon girl" Lia Wilson (Adrian Booth aka Lorna Gray) with whom Calhoun has a past. Unger also takes an interest in Lia. She in turn, is "carrying on" with shave tail Lt. Cutter (John Compton).
Calhoun continues to warn the trespassers against a possible Sioux attack. The Sioux begin to muster their forces. Unger is lured into a trap through the efforts of Jordan. Calhoun is left to defend the fort with his small troop. The Sioux attack and...........................
The story kind of lags through the first two thirds of the film. It focuses on the conflict between the Cameron and Tucker characters and their completion for the affections of Booth. There is however, a rollicking saloon brawl to break the monotony. The final third of the film deals with the well mounted Indian attack which is the highlight of the story.
Also in the cast are Chill Wills as the tough sergeant, William Ching, Wally Cassell, Marshall Reed, Jimmy Lydon as troopers with Douglas Kennedy and William Haade as the problem troopers. Also along are Charlie Stevens as a scout, and William Bakewell, Ray Teal, Gene Roth, John Merton, Francis McDonald, George Chesbro and Barbara Billingsly in a variety of small roles.
Oh! Susanna
coltras351 May 2024
Rod Cameron stars as Captain Calhoun, a cavalry officer dedicated to protecting the rights of Indians from greedy gold prospectors. Calhoun's superior officer Lt. Col. Ungar (Forrest Tucker) despises all Indians, and makes things difficult for those who try to enforce existing treaties. Other interested parties include saloon owner Ira Jordan (Jim Davis), who is counting upon plenty of revenue from the prospectors, and saloon thrush Lia Wilson (Adrian Booth), who carries torches for Calhoun, Ungar and Jordan. An anticipated climax comes with a vengeance as the betrayed Indians attack Ungar's fort.
Oh! Susanna is a fairly ambitious western with lavish production values and good acting, especially by Forest Tucker who as a head of a Fort has a giant-sized chip on his shoulder and is egging for a fight with the Sioux. Jim Davis joins him as a negative character, also egging for a war - they both clash with Rod Cameron's captain character, a West Point man, who is trying to quell a war with Sioux, over a treaty and a woman ( Lorna Grey). It's a fairly good western with enough conflict, dialogue and action - the latter comes in the last twenty minutes with a rousing injun attack.
Overall, Oh! Susanna is entertaining, though the title is wrong as there's no link to Susanna, except that the song appears briefly in "The End". Not sure why it was called that - maybe the filmmakers wanted something unexpected and original.
Oh! Susanna is a fairly ambitious western with lavish production values and good acting, especially by Forest Tucker who as a head of a Fort has a giant-sized chip on his shoulder and is egging for a fight with the Sioux. Jim Davis joins him as a negative character, also egging for a war - they both clash with Rod Cameron's captain character, a West Point man, who is trying to quell a war with Sioux, over a treaty and a woman ( Lorna Grey). It's a fairly good western with enough conflict, dialogue and action - the latter comes in the last twenty minutes with a rousing injun attack.
Overall, Oh! Susanna is entertaining, though the title is wrong as there's no link to Susanna, except that the song appears briefly in "The End". Not sure why it was called that - maybe the filmmakers wanted something unexpected and original.
A colorful but slow-moving western
NewEnglandPat20 July 2005
The U.S. cavalry has the task of keeping white settlers out of the gold-rich Black Hills, thus maintaining a treaty with the Indians, the storyline of which has been done in countless other westerns. Rod Cameron and Forrest Tucker and Jim Davis head a good cast, but character development gets the edge over action and prevents the film from being a cut above the norm. Cameron and Tucker have starred together in other western films and their pairing always results in mutual dislike and creates tense moments. Chill Wills has several good scenes as a cavalry sergeant and the film has excellent technicolor values. There is a good cavalry-Indian skirmish but the slow, meandering plot development of angry and greedy citizens who want to ignore the treaty and mine gold deposits on Indian land results in an average movie.
A John Ford knockoff.
richardann12 August 2005
"Oh! Susannah" is really a knockoff of several John Ford films. After the success of "My Darling Clementine" and "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" Republic must have thought the public would accept any sort of rehash as long as the main theme and the title were a folksy ditty. Here we have John Wayne (Rod Cameron), Henry Fonda (Forrest Tucker), Ward Bond (Chill Wills), Grant Withers (Jim Davis), Victor McLaglen (William Haade), Maureen O'Hara (Adrian Booth), and even John Agar (James Lydon) wannabes. The climax is right out of "Fort Apache."
The action is often chaotic and diffuse, with Rod Cameron holding the film together through his understated acting style. "Oh! Susannah" shows glimpses of what Cameron might have done with a better story and production.
The action is often chaotic and diffuse, with Rod Cameron holding the film together through his understated acting style. "Oh! Susannah" shows glimpses of what Cameron might have done with a better story and production.
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