In Pursuit of Honor

What may be seen by some viewers as just another Western horse chase is really a profound comment on management, military leadership, and courage as well as a very interesting historical antic dote. It dramatically portrays how differently things can look from different points in the chain of command. Gen. MacArthur has seen the threats to the U.S. from Europe and Asia, and he aims to modernize the Army. With an engineering background and the perspective of high command, he simply orders the excess cavalry horses destroyed.

Down on the Mexican border, this order seems absurd by soldiers who have grown to love horses. A courageous bunch led by an honor focused lieutenant and combat wise sergeant seizes the momentary opportunity to save most of the animals. Their superior, who is purely obedience focused, takes after this mutiny, which then becomes an international incident. Retired colonel Hardesty, who is smart enough to have retired to Tucson, and his journalist daughter feed take up the cause with ultimate success.

The story is apparently real, portrayal of the conflict is believable, the characters show their doubts and resolve, and the story is fascinating.

Besides being an enjoyment for anyone who likes horses, this movie also covers shameful incidents from out nation's history. It identifies several issues that warrant further investigation by anyone interested in U.S. history. These include the rise of General McArthur, the treatment of returning W.W. I Veterans,the difficulty of changing the way war is fought.(an issue today)and the influence of the press.. All of this might shed some light on how decisions are made today by men in power. Excellent acting by some actors who are sometimes not praised enough for their craft. Personally, I would accept more movies of this genre.

The film opens onto a flashback of one of the darker moments of history -- the destruction of WWI veteran camps outside the White House during the Depression. This sets the stage for how a few veteran calvarymen have a stronger sense of personal morale than their fellow men.

Then the present, with an adept young man whose father left a longlasting impression to many men he comes into contact with in a southwestern military base. It's a calvary stronghold, with around 500 horses and a fraction of that in men.

But the seeming low-action utopia ends when a Colonel retires and is replaced by a more ruthless replacement who carries out orders of Gen. MacArthur -- to disband the calvary's traditions [discontinuing sabers] and destroy the spare mounts in a brutal method that reminded me of the WWII concentration camp scenes of horror where Nazis would shoot Jews and bury them in mass graves on top of one another.

The start of this movie is a fast set-up for the rest of the film and does not leave much room for intermission. It's a long journey they undergo, and isn't without the harsh reality of the peril that the renegades face in their decision to rescue the horses.

I was attracted initially because of its history-base, which I'm interested in, and I've learned while being entertained at the same time of what happened within our own borders that might not have attracted everyone's eye, but was brutally savage all the same.

In conclusion, this made-for-TV movie scored an 8 with me and if any of this movie's main elements fascinate you it should be on your agenda to see.

I saw this movie and was pleasantly surprised. I didn't expect a "B-rate" movie to capture and keep my attention the way this one did. I happened to be skipping through channels when I saw the uniforms and cavalry and before I knew it, I had seen the whole movie. It's a good story about how a small group of soldiers went against the grain during a rough period in our country's history. I've seen Don Johnson in a lot of different roles throughout the years and I think this was one of his best roles. Its a simple storyline with a happy ending but I would definitely recommend anyone see it-especially if you are an animal lover.

This is the first film I have seen that accurately depicts the U.S. Army Horse Cavalry during this time period.

My father was a trooper in the cavalry during this time period, as an orderly to General Patton (then colonel), another cavalry man.

My father's stories reflected this closeness of a trooper and his horse.

The film was also accurate in uniforms, saddles, and tack, along with the handling of the horses.

Don Johnson's roll of the Sergeant was remarkable, one of his best performances.

I would recommend this film to anyone interested in a missed part of our history, and to anyone just wanting to see a very good movie.