The Horse Soldiers
Adventure, War, Western
MGM/UA  (1959) 119 mins

7.1 (2,459 votes)
“The Horse Soldiers” is a story about a Union Cavalry unit of 1,700 men that are sent behind confederate lines in the spring of 1863, their mission to destroy a railroad supply center. With the men within the unit is a doctor, Major Henry Kendall (William Holden) the regimental surgeon who causes instant antipathy between himself and the unit’s commander, Benjamin H. Grierson (John Wayne). As if that isn’t bad enough, the two are over heard arguing by a southern belle, Miss Hannah Hunter (Constance Towers) who is then taken with them to ensure her silence. Each member has his own reasons for seeing this mission out to the end in a final show down with Confederate troops in Baton Rouge....

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Cast and Crew
John Wayne  ......  Col. John Marlowe
William Holden  ......  Maj. Henry Kendall
Constance Towers  ......  Miss Hannah Hunter of Greenbriar
Judson Pratt  ......  Sgt. Maj. Kirby
Hoot Gibson  ......  Sgt. Brown
Ken Curtis  ......  Cpl. Wilkie
Director  .....  John Ford
Producer  .....  John Lee Mahin; Martin Rackin
Writer  .....  Harold Sinclair; John Lee Mahin
Notes
Goofs:
Factual errors: The film is set in the Spring of 1863 as part of Grant's campaign against Vicksburg, which fell on July 4, 1863. The soldiers discuss their fear of being captured and sent to the notorious Confederate prison at Andersonville, the construction of which started in December, 1963. (more)

Trivia:
The film marked the beginning of mega-deals for Hollywood stars. John Wayne and William Holden received $775,000 each, plus 20% of the overall profits, an unheard-of sum for that time. The final contract involved six companies and numbered twice the pages of the movie's script. The film, however, was a financial failure, with no profits to be shared in the end. (more)

Filming Locations:
Alexandria, Louisiana, USA (more)

Quotes:
Miss Hannah Hunter: They'll catch up to you and cut you to pieces, you nameless, fatherless scum. (more)

Awards:
1 nomination (more)