Cowboys, Indians, soldiers and lots of noisy gunpowder--a throw-back to the days when Tom Mix, Ken Maynard and Buck Jones used to hold the Saturday matinee spellbound. Remember the thrill when troops of soldiers thundered across the screen leaving their loved ones and a trail of dust behind them. And the Indians--how vicious they looked in their war paint, and how quiet they were in sneaking up on an encampment of sleeping men. But what a grand lot of noise there was when battle took place! Those were the days.

Perhaps some of the thrill was due to the screechy sound track and the glaring pictures--it was easy to fall into the character of "Cactus" when the whole thing lacked realism. But Hollywood, not to be caught napping, has brought all of this to its public in typical fashion, adding new thrills with marvelous color photography. Big names, horses, Indians--what else--, and lots of extras have been thoroughly mixed, seasoned well with technicolor, and served hot in the newest Wild West thriller.

The cast is mediocre. Joel McCrea is fine as Buffalo Bill, but Maureen O'Hara, as his wife, turns in her usual wooden performance. Thomas Mitchell, veteran of many fine character portrayals, is poorly cast as Ned Buntline, the newspaperman who made Cody a household word in the East. He is unable to do his usual convincing job. Linda Darnell makes a better looking Indian than the one on the pre-Jefferson nickel, but unfortunately is not seen much in the picture.

The battle of War Bonnet Gorge, for which Cody was given the Congressional Medal of Honor, is the most notable sequence: Filmed on the scene of the original battle, it is made vivid and real by the brilliance of technicolor which gives breath-taking color to the outdoor scenes. Charging from either end of a gorge, the soldiers and Indians meet in the shallow water of the stream bed. The battle which ensues is terrific in its ferocity. So much water is splashed that the lens of the camera gets wet--it really does--you can see the drops running down the glass.

Well, I'll be a hornswoggled jack rabmit! It's round-up time, so let's get going. Yippee!