When the Civil War starts the American troops in Texas head back east to join in the battle. The Kiowas and the Comanches join together and begin raiding the settlements. Alan Johnson (played by Christopher Reeve) and Britt Johnson (Black Fox) consider themselves brothers, even though one is black and one is white.
When many of the settlers' women and children are taken by the Indians Britt Johnson heads up to negotiate to get them back. It seems that the Indians consider black men to be a better people than the whites. The Kiowas give him the name Black Fox. Black Fox tries to negotiate for the release of the captives.
Some of the Indians are presented badly. There is one who tries to rape the captives. The whites aren't portrayed any better. They hate the Indians but they have nothing good to say about the blacks either.
Alan waits for a while but then heads in to Indian territory to help Britt. Some of the Comanches won't release their captives, so Britt challenges one to a fight. To add drama they fight over a pit filled with rattlesnakes. Britt wins and the bad Indian gets pulled in to the pit and Brit frees his family.
Alan then runs in some Comanches and is brought in to camp. Britt returns to town and gets the horses needed to trade for the women and the children. The whites who had once spoken so poorly of him owed him their families. Black Fox is the hero.
Not bad for a TV movie, but not good either. It never really explored the causes of the troubles between the Indian and the whites.
|
