They Died With Their Boots On [G]

From the first moment he rode into WestPoint Military Academy, George Armstrong Custer was pegged as a dandy and a no-hoper with his grades being incredibly poor, his disregard for rule and discipline being incredibly high, and his sense of cavalry and heroism measuring off the scale. Despite the low opinions of him in higher places, Custer builds a glorious name for himself in the military. But that changes when a peace treaty Custer has established with the Sioux Indian tribes is broken and his accusations of those responsible are rejected. To bring the guilty to justice, Custer must make the ultimate sacrifice… on the battlefield at Little Bighorn. 

It’s only just occurred to me, watching Errol Flynn movies in quick succession, that he really is the same in every movie. Robin Hood is Errol in tights. Captain Blood is swashbuckling Errol with a sword. And here it’s Errol with fringe and a gun. He looks damn dashing as a cavalryman it has to be said, but the truth has hit home that he was just another glorious action hero: brilliant at what he did but without any real depth of character. Having said all this, I still really loved They Died With Their Boots On! A romanticised slice of American history and a mighty nice patriotic one (albeit fictionalised) that depicts General Custer as a hero rather then the failure that his named is often attached to; this movie flies along at rocket speed and makes for a very exciting and fun afternoon movie. 

From the first moment he rode into WestPoint Military Academy, George Armstrong Custer was pegged as a dandy and a no-hoper with his grades being incredibly poor, his disregard for rule and discipline being incredibly high, and his sense of cavalry and heroism measuring off the scale. Despite the low opinions of him in higher places, Custer builds a glorious name for himself in the military. But that changes when a peace treaty Custer has established with the Sioux Indian tribes is broken and his accusations of those responsible are rejected. To bring the guilty to justice, Custer must make the ultimate sacrifice… on the battlefield at Little Bighorn. 

Right now I’m giving a shout out to costumer designer Milo Anderson who must have really had some fun coming up with some of these pieces. Particularly Errol’s and Olivia’s! Errol gets to wear these wonderfully exaggerated, but wholly dashing pieces; he’s very much like a Gilderoy Lockhart and it’s fabulous! Olivia’s grandiose pieces are really stunning too, right down to the lace patterns! 

I have to say that Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland are right up there in the company of other romantic leads such as Spencer Tracey and Katherine Hepburn or Barbra Streisand and Ryan O’Neal. These two work together so well and there is something really romantic about when they embrace and kiss one another. Love and tenderness seem to just come out in ripples from the screen like something out of Donnie Darko and it’s magic! As a tragic romantic girl, I could not help but sigh whenever these two were onscreen together. 

It has to be said that a large level of humour makes its way into the film in the form of people trying to act out dying, particularly in battle. Some of the more ‘dramatic’ battle sequences feature men suddenly clutching their sides or stomachs where they’ve been shot and doing some really exaggerated falls forward. It’s actually really hilarious. 

Starring Arthur Kennedy, Charley Grapewin, Gene Lockhart, Anthony Quinn, Stanley Ridges, John Litel, Walter Hampden, Sydney Greenstreet, and Hattie McDaniel, They Died With Their Boots On is a fantastically fun and rollicking movie filled with action, adventure, excitement, romance, drama, and comedy. I found it wonderfully exciting and am very happy to have it in my collection!