| Distant Drums | |
|---|---|
Movie poster for the film Distant Drums |
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| Directed by | Raoul Walsh |
| Produced by | Milton Sperling |
| Written by | Niven Busch Martin Rackin |
| Starring | Gary Cooper Richard Webb Mari Aldon Arthur Hunnicut Carl Harbaugh |
| Music by | Max Steiner |
| Cinematography | Sidney Hickox |
| Editing by | Folmar Blangsted |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release date(s) | December 25, 1951 (New York City, New York) December 29 (wide) February 13, 1952 March 27 August 1 September 11 September 19 December 18 |
| Running time | 101 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Distant Drums is a 1951 film (more specifically, a "Florida Western") directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Gary Cooper. It is set during the Second Seminole War in the 1840s, with Cooper playing an Army captain who destroys a fort held by the Seminole Indians then retreats into the Everglades while under chase.
The actual location of the fort in the film was the historic Castillo de San Marcos.
The enduring legacy of this movie is the earliest known use of the Wilhelm scream sound effect, originally used to vocalize a character being torn to pieces by an alligator.[1]
The title of Pedro Almodóvar's film Tacones lejanos (literally "Distant Heels" but released as High Heels) is a reference to the Spanish title of this film (Tambores lejanos).
Contents |
In 1840, U.S. Army General Zachary Taylor sends out Lieutenant Tufts and scout Monk to a remote Florida island home where the reclusive Captain Quincy Watts lives with a 5-year-old son.
The soldiers' mission is to rescue men and women taken prisoner by Seminole warriors. One of them, Judy Beckett, develops a romantic attraction to Capt. Watts as they flee the Indians into the Everglades.
Most of the other Army troops are massacred after Watts and Tufts separate from them to construct canoes. Back at his home, Watts is distraught to find that his son is gone. He has an underwater fight to the death with Seminole chief Ocala, then is relieved to learn that his boy is safe.