User reviews

I have given this movie a six because of the power of the story. I would have given it a higher mark but for the historical inaccuracies of the story. Its strong point was the fact that it showed black people in the west where they surely were, but in this movie present the first of the inacfcuracies. It would not have been abnormal at all for black people to have been in Oklahoma territory in the latter part of the 19th century. They had been there since the trail of tears. Some of the transplanted Natives were slave holders and simply brought their slaves with them. Second, a black Marshall in that territory would not have been strange at all. Gypsy Smith could have easily been modeled after Bass Reeves who was one of several Black US Marshalls who patrolled Okla territory. While there has always been problems between black and white Americans, it did not really occur in Oklahoma until it became a state. Thirdly, I can't believe that the light bulb which was only invented in 1879 would have been used in a barn in Oklahoma. Great idea for a movie, but could have been more accurate.

I'll admit to only wanting to see this film because of Billy Wirth, which for me was well worth the eleven dollars I spent on the DVD, but for fans of more violent westerns, this isn't the film for you. It was was good movie but I was expecting more action. The dialogue at times was kind of crappy as well as the acting, mainly from Joanna Going but the story was good. Billy Wirth most certainly looked the part of a Native American and did a pretty good job playing one, too. I'm not sure which storyline I liked better, Sidney Poitier's romance, Billy Wirth and Joanna Going's romance, or the ounce of action involved in the movie but it worked. Overall, this was a good movie that's worth the watch.

"Children of the Dust" is a most unusual western movie that was made for TV. Unlike most westerns, this one talks a lot about bigotry and violence against Native Americans and blacks by the local Klansmen. It's worth seeing, especially since it stars Sidney Poitier and he was an incredible actor.

There were things I liked and disliked about this film. I appreciate the look at 18th century racism and found a couple of the plots very compelling...such as the emasculation of the sheriff and his revenge against the scum that hurt him. But, at the same time, I thought occasionally the film seemed a bit like a bad romance novel...which in some ways deflected from the stories. Now I am not saying the romance between the white lady and the native man was bad or unnecessary...but it did seem like the emphasis on their passion was distracting. As a result, the portions about the mistreatment of blacks on the prairie seemed stronger and more to the point.

By the way, I am not trying in any way to gloss over the mistreatment of black people in the west...though in many ways, the actual life was far better for a black American than those who remained in the South. There were more opportunities, less racism AND many of the US Cavalry soldiers were black...though you seldom see this in most films about the period.

I am a big fan of this film and found the TV mini series "Children of The Dust", the version fans should look for. At least 20 minutes or more are cut on the DVD version of this film.

I would also suggest viewers who enjoyed this film to check out the book there is a more rounded storyline with Corby/Whitewolf and Rachel, more on Black History and Buffalo Solders. There were two many storylines for the series or this film.

Sidney Poitier only shows he gets better with age, the talent just keeps growing the chemistry between his character of Gypsy Smith and Regina Taylor were wonderful viewing. I also enjoyed the Billy Wirth/Joanna Going storyline, they seems to play off each other well.

Billy Wirth is of course the "Model of Indian Vision". The look, the attitude, the dream of every woman who was wanted to be carried off in one of those romance novels by a native hero. Worked for me also.

Much more could have been done with this storyline but it did give the viewer a brief glimpse of racial problems back in the 1880's, white take over of native schooling, lack of Black pioneers to setup towns in the west. Michael Moriarty (Maxwell) as always a great actor comes across as a very caring and confused teacher, not sure if the "whites" should be interfering with native culture.

For anyone who enjoys characters and watching them change this film is for you. I thought the chemistry between Poitier's character and that of the orphan Whitewolf very moving and thought Wirth and Poitier worked very well together. Billy Wirth did some of his best scenes when working with Poitier.

Going got on my nerves sometimes when you want to just stop and shake her or give her a " wake-up and grown-up" call. But on the whole it was a great evening of entertainment.

Look for the two tape version of this mini series if you are a fan you will really see the difference.

It's the 1880's. Sidney Poitier plays a bounty hunter named Gypsy Smith, half of African American, half of Cherokee descent. He helps African American settlers to find a new home in the town of their own- Freedom in the Oklahoma territory. The local KKK tries to prevent their plan with their mindless cross burnings and killings. Meanwhile Rachel Maxwell is madly in love with the Cheyenne boy, White Wolf, who was brought to live with the family by Gypsy. Children of the Dust (1995) is a two-part western miniseries directed by David Greene. It shows us what racism looked like in the old west in a touching way. What the Ku Klux Klan does here is really heartbreaking and causes anger in the viewer. Sidney Poitier, now 92, gives a very strong performance as the aging gunslinger. There's certain sweetness between the scenes of Gypsy and the schoolteacher Drusilla, wonderfully played by Regina Taylor. Joanna Going is superb as Rachel and Billy Wirth is terrific as Corby/White Wolf. There is a great deal of eroticism and romance in many scenes between them. Michael Moriarty is fantastic as John Maxwell and so is Farrah Fawcett as his wife Nora. Hart Bochner is scary good as the villain Shelby Hornbeck. There are also talents like Shirley Knight, James Caviezel and Robert Guillaume in the movie. I recommend you take a look at this miniseries when you get a chance. At least I was moved by it.

I can imagine why he'd want to die, after starring in this rubbish. The man is incredible, but even Sidney Poitier couldn't save this tiresome morality play about racism in the old West. He and Joanna Going are both fantastic in this film: too bad the screenplay, co-stars, directing, and score couldn't match those two.

Don't know what film or version Jeff saw, but this entire film was awesome, not just Poitier and Going. The story was riveting, suspenseful and engaging. And for the guy complaining about historical accuracy, get real. Yes there were some Black deputy marshals in the Indian territory, but they had no authority to arrest Whites outside of Indian territory. As a rule, they did not "patrol" but exercised warrants on criminals only. I did find it odd that Corby didn't seem to have "any' Indian friends. I know their numbers were diminished but it still strikes me as strange. Even as Corby returned to his people, his Indian cohorts remain faceless and nameless.

This has to be one of the best movies we have seen and we highly recommend it for it's exposure of the injustices of bigotry. Billy Wirth is an incomparable actor and truly awesome as Corby/White Wolf. However, felt the story would have been enhanced if his character had more scenes. This is a movie that can be watched over and over without tiring.

But the DVD I bought from Amazon had about an hour cut out. One reviewer said it was about twenty minutes or more I believe but it was at least an hour. I knew the series had been chopped up but since I love it so much, I decided to get it anyway. I don't know why it could not have been left whole.