When The Legends Die

Seldom does a film that depicts the plight of the American Indian avoid the cliches of how badly white men treat their red brothers, causing disillusioned Indians to retreat to their reservations and fill themselves with alcohol. A bit of this is in WHEN THE LEGENDS DIE, but it refrains from hitting the viewer over the head and filling him with guilt. Forrest plays a young Indian who makes his first contact with whites through the rodeo, and especially through his relationship with Widmark, a no-good drunkard who has little respect for anything beyond his immediate pleasure. Widmark notes the skill with which Forrest handles horses, a skill he learned while a young...