Brandon, a surveyor, dreams of building a railway to the west. He sets off with his son, Davy, to survey a route. They discover a new pass which will shave 200 miles off the expected distance, but they are set upon by a party of Cheyenne. One of them, a white renegade with only two fingers on his right hand, kills Brandon and scalps him. Davy is all alone now.
Direction
Ford's massive crowd scenes and train choreography are genuinely breathtaking.
Practical Effects
Real locomotives, hundreds of extras, actual location shooting in Sierra Nevada.
Production
Built two towns and 40 miles of track—Hollywood excess before it was cool.
Director
John Ford
George O'Brien
Davy Brandon
Madge Bellamy
Miriam Marsh
Cyril Chadwick
Jesson
Will Walling
Thomas Marsh
J. Farrell MacDonald
Corporal Casey
George Waggner
Buffalo Bill
Fred Kohler
Bauman
James A. Marcus
Judge Haller
Gladys Hulette
Ruby
Jean Arthur
Reporter (uncredited)
Chief John Big Tree
Cheyenne Chief (uncredited)
Winston Miller
Young Davy (uncredited)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The 'real' Abraham Lincoln's son Robert attended the premiere and approved of Charles Edward Bull's portrayal—apparently the prosthetic nose was that convincing.
This was John Ford's first major hit after dozens of B-movies; the massive scale convinced studios he could handle 'prestige' pictures, essentially inventing the modern blockbuster director.
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