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Fort Apache

Fort Apache

Western · 1948

Owen Thursday sees his new posting to the desolate Fort Apache as a chance to claim the military honour which he believes is rightfully his. Arrogant, obsessed with military form and ultimately self-destructive, he attempts to destroy the Apache chief Cochise after luring him across the border from Mexico, against the advice of his subordinates.

Movie details

Fort Apache

“John Ford's Masterpiece of the Frontier!”

1948 Western 2h 8m

Critical arithmetic

The consensus, allegedly.

IMDb

7.4 / 10

21.2K votes

Rotten Tomatoes

100 %

Tomatometer

TMDB

7.0 / 10

Community rating

External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.

Owen Thursday sees his new posting to the desolate Fort Apache as a chance to claim the military honour which he believes is rightfully his. Arrogant, obsessed with military form and ultimately self-destructive, he attempts to destroy the Apache chief Cochise after luring him across the border from Mexico, against the advice of his subordinates.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Fort Apache?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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From Wichita to Dodge City, to the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Wyatt Earp is taught that nothing matters more than family and the law. Joined by his brothers and Doc Holliday, Earp wages war on the dreaded Clanton and McLaury gangs.

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Rio Conchos

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3:10 to Yuma

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Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

John Ford

Written by

James Warner Bellah · Frank S. Nugent

John Wayne

John Wayne

Capt. Kirby York

Henry Fonda

Henry Fonda

Lt. Col. Owen Thursday

Shirley Temple

Shirley Temple

Philadelphia Thursday

Pedro Armendáriz

Pedro Armendáriz

Sgt. Beaufort

Ward Bond

Ward Bond

Sgt. Maj. Michael O'Rourke

George O'Brien

George O'Brien

Capt. Sam Collingwood

Victor McLaglen

Victor McLaglen

Sgt. Festus Mulcahy

Court is in session

Put Fort Apache on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.