Made in the period between two John Ford masterpieces, The Searchers and "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance", it lacks the completeness of both as well as that wonderful, overarching grandness of a larger theme that enriches Ford's finest efforts. I think this movie works in many of its parts, even if the sum is less than we've come to expect from the director.

The "Horse Soldiers" of the title are a Union cavalry company under command of Col. John Marlowe (John Wayne) who have to venture deep into southern territory to cut off confederate supply lines. Since they are our titular characters and because of the traditional slant of history on the war between the states, we would assume all our sympathies are supposed to be with the boys in blue. But Ford, a lifelong student of civil war history and a Yankee married to a flower of the southern aristocracy, does not ever really give either side the satisfaction of triumph (there are no decisively won battles in the film, only skirmishes and constant fight-and-flight) because he knows that there is no real victory in systematic destruction. Defeat, as usual in Ford films, is where more richness is to be found and by putting the Union army inside southern territory potential for casualties both mortal and moral is escalated. Neither side emerges unsoiled by their descent into what Col. Marlowe calls "this insanity".

Southerners are often depicted as alternating clowns and gallant heroes; genteel (Russell Simpson) and degenerate (Strother Martin & Denver Pyle); compassionate and sadistic. The Union soldiers under Marlowe's command are a ragtag bunch, some out for personal glory (the politician, played brilliantly by Willis Bouchey who seemed made for such roles); misfits that found themselves in uniform while doing what comes most naturally to them: wreaking violence and killing (Judson Pratt);ordinary men who will do whatever their fellows do and will follow most anyone who leads; and Bill Holden's doctor - doctors being a tribe hated by Marlowe because of his own wife's death at their hands. Holden was perfect for the part of Dr. Kendall. No one may have played cynical like Holden and he does it well for the entire film.

John Wayne's Col. Marlowe has to keep this disparate bunch in line, deal with his own disgust at being forced to destroy what he spent his whole life building up (the railroad--and by extension, his country)and on top of everything, he has to escort a most unwilling and uncooperative enemy lady and her servant. Needless to say, Marlowe has enormous pressures to pursue his objective, keep his temper and above all, keep these people alive. This tension fills the movie and along with the constant movement, keeps it from ever being static. This film is somewhat long but it moves.

Nobody in the company likes Col. Marlowe much at all until deeper into the film when both Hannah and Holden's Dr. Kendall come to appreciate him and his paradoxes in their respective ways.

While this isn't one of John Ford's best films, it's still very good and well worth seeing. That's because it's one of the few films I have seen that actually talks about the US Cavalry during the Civil War. In fact, now that I think about it, it's amazing how few films Hollywood has made about this supremely important and devastating war. And, fortunately, the film has a strong basis in reality, as the mission John Wayne leads his men on is inspired by real incidents. The battle scenes are excellent and in the case of the battle fought on the main street in one town, quite compelling and sad.

About the only negatives are the seemingly artificial animosity between Wayne and William Holden. At times, it seems like this is more a plot device than anything else, though this is hashed out better as the story unfolds. Also, another minor problem is the female lead. Considering how often she tried to escape, that she was a spy and tried to alert the Confederates, I just couldn't buy Wayne in how he treated her. I would have shot her and be done with it!!! What's worse is near the very end, completely out of no where, he confesses to her that he loves her!!! Where did this come from anyways?! Please try to look past these issues and enjoy the film for what it is--a tribute to some very brave men on a seemingly impossible mission.

John Ford was a truly great director, even one of the finest, where even minor or lesser works still had interest value and were much better than a lot of directors at their best. While whether John Wayne was a great actor or not has always divided people, he was definitely a great star and very charismatic.

'The Horse Soldiers' is not their best collaboration, my personal favourite is 'The Searchers' and not quite among their best. This said it is very hard to say that, because they made so many great films together, and their best efforts being masterpieces. In no way though is that knocking the quality of 'The Horse Soldiers', because regardless of any inaccuracies it is stirring enough, often the very meaning of epic and while very fondly remembered here it deserves to be better known and it is quite a shame that apparently it wasn't particularly well-liked on release.

It isn't perfect by all means, at least to me. Constance Towers is radiant and the chemistry with her fellow actors is good, but she does have a tendency to overplay the feistiness so the character can come over as irritating. The romantic elements weren't as interesting as the rest of the film and elements, and felt shoe-horned in, and while almost all the music is sensational the opening song is an ill-fit, both in the context of the film and doesn't come over as a particularly great film now.

However, 'The Horse Soldiers' is a visual wonder. Throughout there is stunning use of landscape and even more stunning cinematography that make for so many striking, rousing and sometimes poetic images. Ford's direction is exemplary and a strong example as to what made him so revered as a director. David Buttolph's music score couldn't have been more superbly fitting, and it is an absolutely outstanding music score in its own right with rousing and affecting use of army choruses that capture the film's mood wonderfully.

Scripting is literate and thoughtful, if occasionally a little talky, and dramatically 'The Horse Soldiers' is convincing and the characters are ones that are developed nicely and ones that are easy to care for. Seeing Wayne and William Holden together is particularly well-realised, their contrasting personalities are incredibly interesting, when it could easily have been an awkward mismatch, and adding a nostalgic value. The story, not a western despite being what Ford and Wayne were particularly famous for, rarely feels dull and has enough marvellous set pieces and emotional impact to satisfy. The most memorable sequence is the one with the southern military cadets laying down their young lives on order. The whole ending is powerful and very poignant.

Wayne is very charismatic in his role, but brings more than just that and star power, there is also complexity and nuance. Holden is more subdued than usual, and while not one of his best performances it is a suitably nuanced turn that fits the character perfectly and makes him mesh well with everything else. Towers aside, the rest of the cast are fine though some Ford regulars are sadly missed.

Overall, a stirring, underrated and very watchable epic, even if there are better Wayne/Ford collaborations around. 8/10 Bethany Cox