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Last of the Dogmen (1995)
You boys have any luck?
I'm afraid a needle in a haystack ring a bell? Try down there by Buck Creek They might have got that far 10-4 I want those bastards found They killed one of the guards. They cut his throat Jesus! What do you figure they'll do? Keep running Make for the border Buy a little condo on a lake somewhere and live happily ever after There's only one thing standing in their way 4000 sq miles of the roughest country God ever put on a map Not a road, not a town Hell there are places out there that haven't even seen a foot print Sheriff? Who are those guys? Find Gates Lewis Gates? But I thought that... Just find him Yes sir Rise and shine Lewis What are you looking at? You were supposed to stop me after 3 remember? Hope you remember where we parked cause I sure don't Lewis I didn't do it, and however said I did, is a liar! A busload of escaped prisoners went off the highway near Logan Pass last night Three escaped They headed straight into the Oxbow I don't do that kind of work anymore Lewis wait! The FBI showed up. Lewis, they need one brought out alive Deegan himself sent me to find you Tell Deegan he can kiss my ass You're gonna have to do that yourself Briggs Just talk to him Otherwise he'll chew my butt Lewis please Deegan I'm telling you what I told your Deputy. Not interested Now you listen good. I need you on this one. Drunk or sober you're still the best tracker in the state You always were a charmer Briggs, is that mangy dog of his there? He could use a bath sir Well I just got a complaint he's been chasing deer again Now I want you to take Mr. Gates down to the county lockup 15 day for wildlife harassment and failure to obey the leash law Leash law! You shouldn't provoke him Lewis Hell, I shouldn't do a lot of things I end up doing You going in after those convict fellars? Yeah, it appears I am My cousin walked into them mountains 20 years ago Never come out Any message in case I come across him? Tell him I run off with his wife Come on Zip! Where'd they go in? Bottom of the ravine The dogs lost their trail at the north fork Armed? More than likely A 12 gauge pump and 357 still unaccounted for That'll be $4000 cash per man plus expenses You'll get what you're always paid and not a dime more Come on Zip, I guess we're going to jail Gates I don't give a shit about the other 2 Sears comes out alive If there's one scratch on him you don't even get horse feed I'll treat him with kid gloves What you waiting for? Go on, get to work Good boy Zip It looks like we weren't the only ones who got thirsty Four legs or two? Come on check it out Goddamit, Zip! I almost let the air out of you Come on, make some noise next time will ya Hey, it's my hat you know Howdy boys Ah relax They ain't going anywhere We'll go up and grab them at first light Besides I'm beat Tomorrow we cash in Zippy Maybe we'll finally get that log cabin built You think you can handle a real roof over your head? Course this ain't such a bad roof either What is it! Somebody's out there And the kid? Leave him He won't be back Hell no, Not with a gut full of buckshot What the hell was that? Hey! I'm gettin outta here! Goddamit! Who are you? I was beginning to wonder about you Sears give you any trouble? No trouble at all You know we never talked about what happened We should of There's nothing to talk about My daughter is dead Now, where's my man? If you want the rest of him You ride in and find him yourself What the hell is this? It's all that's left of your runners They're died All of them? What the hell happened? I don't know What do you mean you don't know Goddamit, don't play games I don't know I was moving in Everything was fine. Then I heard gunshots When I got to where they should have been All I found was that shirt And enough blood on the ground to paint this office No bodies, nothing You expect me to believe this cock and bull story? I don't give a damn what you believe All I know is I wasted 4 days and I'm out 12 grand Where you going? I need a drink I'm not finished with you I want some answers That makes two of us Convicts elude capture in Oxbow Historian in Native American Studies awarded grant Archaeological dig to continue near Judith Gap I look Professor Sloan Over there Where is Professor Sloan? Over that way Excuse me, I'm looking for Professor Sloan Excuse me Where the hell is Professor Sloan? Please don't ask me to go over there I have already been over there, and over there, and over there Who wants to know? Give me a break lady It took me 3 and a half hours to drive up here to meet this guy I'm about ready to sick my dog on somebody You call that a dog? Will somebody just point out the old fart L.D. Lillian Diane You're not the first person to make that mistake Mr...? Gates, Lewis Gates Gates... All right, take this to Sandy and have her clean it up by tonight, ok. Good work So Mister Gates, what can this ol fart do for you? You don't really look like a professor - So where did you find this - In the Oxbow The Oxbow. Wasn't that just in the news? Something about convicts. Yeah, I was the guy they hired to find them Bounty hunter? Please, Civil Service. It's sounds a little less... Barbaric? I tracked them for 4 days. The trail ended in a meadow 20 miles in Somebody got to those men before I did. There was blood everywhere, and that Quite a story Do you know what this is? I call it a wild guess... An arrow? Cheyenne arrow. Dog soldier to be exact Dog soldier? Within the Cheyenne tribes, there used to be a military society made up of the strongest and bravest men They were fierce fighters, unyielding They called themselves, Hotametaneo'o... Dogmen The cavalry called them Dog Soldiers, they were suicide soldiers They often acted as rear guards A sort of sacrificial decoy So the rest of the tribe could escape You see? What does it mean? Nothing Except maybe another one of your Civil Servant speech to those men So what about this? An authentic reproduction. About $15 in any tourist shop I saw something in that meadow What, exactly? I do not know. It was just later I found horse tracks. And what's unusual about that? They weren't shod I checked with the Forest Service and nobodies running stock up in that country And nobody rides unshod horses except Indians. That's what you're implying isn't it? You don't seriously believe Cheyenne Dog Soldiers are running around loose in the Oxbow? Do you? No of course not. Just... I'm not a nut case, ok I'm sorry I can't help you, but Drop that bone Get back here Is that your dog? Give it back to him Zip The group from the Institute are here Doctor I'll be right there Mr. Gates... It's been... entertaining Drive carefully Somebody killed those men Doctor Wasn't me, and it wasn't another bounty hunter Zip! Sorry. Are you always this persistent? I got half way home before turning back Call it gut instinct And what is this gut instinct of yours telling you? You're not telling me everything You want something to drink? Thought you'd never ask! Well, I'm not hiding anything You wouldn't eventually uncover Give me that. Let go! So I'm willing to satisfy your curiosity If you promise not to bother me again Yep Mineral water. It's good for you Here we are By late1864, Many tribes were raiding settlements, stealing horses. Making a general nuisance of themselves But one of the few Cheyenne chiefs Really trying to make peace Was Black Kettle He and his people were instructed to make camp at Sand Creek, near Ft. Lyon They'd been promised protection. So that night they had a feast with dancing and games To celebrate peace The following dawn, November 29th was freezing A group of Colorado volunteers known as the Bloodless Third surrounded the camp They were instructed to take off their coats Strange, huh? Black Kettle immediately raised the American flag and the white flag of peace People rushing around in great panic and fear and he kept calling out Not to be frightened, they'd been promised protection, there was no danger Suddenly, the troops attacked! Now, two thirds of these Indians were women and children It was total chaos. It was a massacre Blood froze instantly on the bodies Then looting began Scalps were taken. Fingers, ears, noses cut off Babies were cut out of the wombs. Women had their uteruses cut off and the soldiers were them on their hats As a matter of fact, when they put their clean coats back on, they paraded through Denver with body parts decorating their uniforms and horses Among the few that escaped Sand Creek were 20 men, women and children led by Lone Wolf, leader of the Dog Men The soldiers chased them northward, through 2 states Right up into the mountains of northwestern Montana The blizzard force them to turn back and they left the Indians for dead Here, Lone Wolf There Now you know every thing there is to know It's late. I'm tired. Good night Wait a minute. Don't you see? It all adds up What? Just suppose... What if by a fluke, or a miracle What if Lone Wolf and those Cheyenne did survive? Isn't it possible their descendents could of remained hidden in the Oxbow? They didn't survive How do you know? They were starving in a hostile environment, winter, only the clothes on their back. They didn't survive. You sure of that? If there were Indians in the Oxbow don't you think someone would have seen them by now? Not necessarily You are a nut case Look at the wolf Now we know wolves exist in the Oxbow, ok? I've found their tracks. I've heard their howls. I've even found the spot where one watched my camp for half a day - But I've never seen one - It's not the same It is the same It's not the same Look, Elvis is dead The government is hiding UFO's and there are no Cheyenne Dog Soldiers living in the Oxbow Why are you being so goddamed pigheaded? Because I'm goddamed good at it I know you saw something out there you can't explain. I do believe that But I can't invest all this time and energy into your fantasy, I rely on facts Now, we're both tired. I'm going to bed. You're welcome to the couch I should warn you, I tend to walk around naked in the morning Oxbow Quadrangle These files contain copies of every issue we ever published 93 years worth There you are son Happy hunting Lost hunter Friday, March 16, 1935 Search Suspended Oxbow Claims 6 Lives Wild Boy Captured 'A half-starved"... "Nicknamed Jacko" "Didn't speak a word of English" Retirement home How you doing today Mr. Hollis? When will they put some goddam fish in this river? I talked to the game warden and he assures me this river is full of fish Well he's a liar. Why when I was a kid we'd come down here... Mr. Hollis, this is Mr. Gates He's going to visit with you for a while Full of fish, my ass Who the hell are you? Wonder that myself sometimes Hand me one of them night crawlers, will ya? So I understand you used to work for the railroad Not just any railroad son The Great Northern Pacific. 53 years Mr. Hollis, tell me about Jacko Well I'll be damned! - You remember that? - Remember I caught the little runt! What happened? Been a hell of a lot of years since I thought of that 35 I think it was Me and old Ed Vallee, we was heading up to Kootenay Spur line needed some work Sometime past noon, We spotted something run across the track First I thought it was a deer Then I seen it was a boy Well Ed stopped the train We lit out after him There he is! We chased him a ways and finally cornered him down along the river Soon as we got close, we seen he was an Indian. He didn't speak English - Just sort of grunted - What did you do with him? Well, me and Ed didn't know what to do with him He was cold and tired and so I wrapped him in my shirt We brung him down to Sheriff Case, He stuck him in a cell cause he didn't have no other place to put him We nicknamed him Jacko Cause his face kinda looked wide eyed and scared Like a jack-o-lantern Next morning, he was gone We figured he squeezed out through the bars during the night Well, that was the end of it. Nobody ever seen him again Course the Sheriff contacted some of the local Reservations, but nothing ever come of it Seems like nobody knew who the boy was ner where he come from Where do you think he came from? Hell, I don't know But you tell me, what's a Indian boy who don't speak a word of English doing way out in the middle of nowhere? 60 miles from the nearest town? This photo was taken just after these Cheyenne girls arrived At the Indian School in Carlisle Pennsylvania The same a girls, 14 months later Their hair was cut, they were give Christian names and forbidden to speak in their native tongue So began the Government's policy in dealing with the plains tribe The policy of... The policy of assimilation Religious and cultural We need to talk Look at this 17 people disappeared In the Oxbow since 1898. 17 people, doesn't that seem a little odd? Do you always where that hat? There's more In 1935 A young Indian boy was found on the edge of the Oxbow Didn't speak a word of English I talked to the man who caught him An Indian boy who doesn't speak English and vanishes without a trace Explain that one You rely in facts, isn't that what you told me? Well these are the facts What do you want from me? I'm going back in If my hunch is right I don't want to end up on that list I need someone along who speaks Cheyenne. One of your students? No... oh no All I'm asking for is a few days. We ride, we take a look around. We ride back out. Three days If they're out there I have to know and goddamit, so do you Morning Folks, I'm in a bit of a rush so, come on... come on! I got a bad feeling about this Oh relax, he seems capable enough I don't trust him Let's mount up, we got a long ride ahead of us Good luck Doctor Excuse me! What the hell are you doing? I checking the stirrup Oh no,no way! Hey kid get back down here Don't listen to him John. I'll see you in three days You go on now Like you said, if they're in there, I have to know This ain't going to be a picnic lady I've seen this country reduce grown men to tears Ain't no place for a woman You really are a cowboy, aren't you? What is it you fellas say? "We're burning day light" POLICE LINE DO NOT CROSS Maybe we should rest If you're tired Smells, ah... Interesting. What is it? Lewis Gates wilderness stew Ah ha, and what's in Lewis Gates wilderness stew Anything that ain't nailed down You know when I was a kid I hated the idea of camping out I mean, anything thats crawls or bugs scared me to death So what do I do? I choose a career that keeps me outdoors 80% of the time You know, funny how things turn out Now I find being in the wilderness so invigorating, life affirming, really Jesus... Wonder Woman I've got some aspirin I don't need any aspirin, thank you Boy aren't we in a great mood Hey look, just because I let you ride along doesn't mean I have to like it Now stop treating me like a child I didn't realize I was Thank you "A.G.?" Abraham Gates, My grand-father You really hang on to things Some things - Well? - Not bad If you don't mind the taste Alright, I heard that Now on you cook your own supper. How's that? Is he always like this? Good night Gates Good night Doc You're ain't going to walk around naked in the morning are you? I'll try to restrain myself Oh, this was ah, where I found the arrow and the tracks I guided elk hunters in this far but never went beyond that ridge and that's the direction where the tracks were headed Wonder how long this weather will keep up? 80% chance of rain though tonight. Clearing by tomorrow Really? An old Indian trick? KQRP all news radio? Careful of this damn shale Watch your footing, and I mean it. If your horse goes down you don't go with him Thanks for the tip Don't even move I told you to watch your step! You're not in a classroom Out here one little mistake will get you killed Feel free to take charge Mr. Gates Can you see that rope? Yeah Well let go and grab it with both hands What about you? Don't worry about me Just do it! - Ready? - Yeah! On three! One... Two... Three! Zip... Zipp! Lead the horse! Good boy! That's it, good boy! Now pull her up Keep her up You ok? Yeah! It's just a little disconcerting to realize the smartest member of our expedition is the dog Saddle up. We still got 2 hours of day light yet Zip, you want a taste? here let me get ya Is that good? You want more? You are really in your element out here, aren't you? I like the solitude Lately it seems like the only time I'm at ease is when I when I got a 100 miles between me and the rest of humanity Sounds like you were born a century too late That's what my wife used to say Used to? She died a couple years ago I'm sorry Was she ill? We were riding in the back country... making a river crossing Horse spooked and bucked her. I went in after her Current was too strong One second she was there and... Her dad still blames me to this day What more could you have done? Drown What about you. Ever been married? Only to my work Don't get me wrong, they've been plenty of men Some worked out, some didn't Just always had to be on my terms Lady, if I was born a century to late, You were definitely born a century too early Russell and his wife came across it berry picking Mrs. Burtney said Lewis was at the Chronicle the other day He spent three hours going through old copies of the newspaper What the hell are you up to, Gates? Oh ah, want a drink? Love one Whiskey. It's good for you I'm curious about one thing Why Indians? Oh, because I admire them and because we owe them a tremendous debt How's that? They gave us romance, myths, legends They gave us a history The Indians shaped the character of our entire nation We picked a hell of a way to say thank you didn't we? Well what happened was inevitable The way it happened It was unconscionable There be any whiskey left? My head feels like a punching bag thanks to you I got some aspirin Oh great, something chewed a hole in my sleeping bag Tracks? What? On the ground. How many toes? Four Ah, it's probably some little chipmunk Chipmunks, muskrats, squirrels They all 4 toes in front, 5 in the back, all the others got 5 and 5 Now weasels tho, now they're a different story They tend to walk on the balls of their feet The balls of their feet Look, we've been riding for a week I agreed to 3 days, I think we should head back It was romantic idea, Indians in the Oxbow I admit, I got caught up myself But... We have better things to do then go traipsing around these mountains looking for ghosts If anyone in my department knew what I was doing out here they'd have me committed I don't know why I let you talk me into this I have classes to teach I have a life As soon as we're packed up we're heading back Understand? Gates, have you heard a word I've said? You want to go back? Yes! I'm a anthropologist, not Daniel Boone Have you seen my canteen? Where is the canteen? I hate camping Gates? What is the matter with you? Here's you damn canteen Speaking Cheyenne My God! Very slowly Toss down your pistol Do it! - Don't move! - Does breathing count? Look at them Indian speaking in native tongue - What are they saying? - I'm... not sure Speaking Cheyenne What are you telling him? I told him we come in a good way. In peace I also told him you were a great warrior Who wasn't afraid to fight them all single handedly You got to be kidding The Cheyenne admire bravery Let's just hope they don't put you to the test If they do, I'm coming after you first - Zip - Just don't move No, no,no they'll kill you! You were right. They're Cheyenne Dog soldiers In my life I never would have believed And yet here we are A step back into history My God, I feel privileged Sorry, guess I'm not so tough after all Like hell you're not! She can't walk any further She needs a horse A horse! She's weak, she has to ride! Lewis I'll be fine Listen asshole, either she rides or you're gonna kill both of us right now You may not understand my words but you get my meaning, don't ya? What's it gonna be? Let me take him Please, you're exhausted, come on Speaks Cheyenne Whatever you said I hope it was friendly Unbelievable! Yeah, unbelievable It's no use The Indian predate the boy scout. The knots are solid What are they going to do with us? I don't know You the expert, remember? Well they could kill us But traditionally many Cheyenne prisoners were just absorbed into the tribe Absorbed? Yeah, they treated their prisoners so well they often refused to go home even if they had the chance Their hospitality overwhelms me Well you can't blame them really, they're afraid of us He name is Zip Lillian how do you say thank you? Nia'ish Nia'ish - He says to follow him - I'm not leaving my dog You don't have a choice What? This is Spotted Elk The last surviving son of Lone Wolf He wants to know if we've come to return him to the house of iron bars Seems when he was a small boy he was captured by some white men and put in a cage Jacko Did you get a line on Mr. personality here? His name is Yellow Wolf He's leader of the dog soldiers, next in line to be Chief I guess it take a real man to shoot a dog You should be happy they didn't eat him Oh didn't I tell you, it's the other reason they're called dog soldiers This is where we stay They tell of many of Cheyenne killed From his father's flight from the white soldiers There was a great storm The Indians were lost and starving A wolf appeared and lead them to this valley The wolf spoke Telling them to remain here Hidden from the white man for ever They survived This was during the moon when the deer shed their horns 128 winters ago What's going on over there? I don't know They were hunting when his son got separated They were shot by 3 white men Yellow Wolf and the dogmen killed them He's burning up The infection must be spreading Lillian, tell me what he needs? Why don't you try and convince them and I'll ride He says the decisions not his It's good you offer, but his people survived all this time without the white man's help To ask for it now might make something bad happen Penicillin As much as you can get Isn't that hard to come by without a prescription? Use your imagination Right Tell him I need my pistol Now my knife The knife Oh, one more thing - What the hell are you doing? - That's for Zip That was stupid I'm sorry Lillian But before I do somebody a favor, the score has to be even That's just the way I am He'll ride with you part of the way Be careful If you don't come back, I'll be killed It's just the way he is Easy girl, easy You did good girl With you in a minute I said I'd be... That's the problem with this country. Nobody works anymore Silent Alarm to Canmore Drugs Don't do it buddy I've got grandchildren Relax will ya. Penicillin, you got that? Bag it up. Go on! Briggs. Don't try anything. I already called for backup Why'd you go and do that? Now you just stay right where you are Put that away before you hurt somebody No more games Lewis I taking you in Stop that man, he just robbed me Rule number one Briggs, never take your eyes off the suspect Pull over You pull over Get out of the way What the hell are you doing Lewis? Sheriff, look at this Convicts elude capture in Oxbow The Oxbow Quadrangle You think he's going to make it? It's too soon to know Lewis Gates wilderness stew... good! And it's good for you too. Here, try that. Here, you try it then You don't know what you're missing It's very nice, but really I couldn't This is their way of showing thanks. To refuse their gifts would be insulting Nia'ish... very beautiful Lillian, what I'm I going to do with all this stuff? Well, what all rich eligible bachelors do Find a wife and settle down Very funny Are you shocked? You known about this? For a while Spotted Elk brought me here He was curious about some of the things When game is scarce they're forced to hunt outside the valley That's when they run into white men They hide from most, but those that venture to close End up here Wouldn't you kill to protect your family and way of life? Oh he wants to know about the silver bird with the long white tail I just told him man walked on the moon He just called me a wonderful liar He wants to know about other Cheyenne. How they're living What are you going to tell him? The truth You hear that? I have waited all my life to hear that You know something Lillian We can't let anything happen to these people No one must ever find out No one Who? My father-in-law I covered my back trail How did they find it? How much time do we have? They're 3 mile from the waterfall. Half a day maybe less Spotted Elk wants to leave the valley and travel deeper into the mountains Yellow Wolf says there is no time, they should stay and fight Jesus, they'll get slaughtered The Cheyennes or the troopers? What if we created a diversion? Maybe it would buy them some more time From this time on do not mistreat the Cheyenne Think of us in a good way All of us are your relations You exchange gifts at a ceremony Lillian, they've already got everything I own From this time on we are one of the like hearted people You are Cheyenne. Go in a good way I was just thinking how much I was going to miss your... wilderness stew Knock it off Lillian. Saddle up I'm afraid this is another journey youre going to have to make on your own I asked Spotted Elk if I can stay with them Get on your horse Lillian No, my works just begun I want a living record set down A memorial to the last of their kind Have you lost your mind? I spent half my life teaching others Now out here with these people, I'm the student. I'm... living it I belong with them I'm staying Why don't you admit the real reason you're upset You'll miss me Let's go Zip Looks like it's just the two of us Not you too I don't believe this I guess I always knew a woman would come between us You're better off here anyways I gotta feeling I'm headed for trouble Take care of her He likes to sleep with it Nia'ish Nia'ish yourself This oughta help That looks ancient. Is it still good? Dynamite? It's like wine It only get better with age Easy... easy! See this Over time it sweats Nitro, big boom! This is goodbye Will you promise me something No matter how bad it gets, no matter what happens Don't let them eat my dog I promise You really walk around naked in the morning? Do weasels really walk around on the balls of their feet? What would you say to a goodbye kiss? I'd say it's about time What the hell was that? You call that a kiss? Better I'm a good student That too tight? Sorry about the cheap shot back in town. Nothing personal There's a cave half way up It goes all the way through the waterfall All right men mount up You're making a mistake You do this you're going to get these men killed All right men, let's move out Drop it! I'll kill you where you stand Drop that damn gun Do it now! Put it down Gates He's hurt bad What do we do now Deputy? We're going back. Come here give me a hand. I need some help here They tell me you saved my life You did for me what you couldn't do for my daughter I wish to God it was the other way I'm tired of hating you Lewis When you're ready I think maybe it's time we had that talk Nobody around here, including me Wants to see you put away for stealing some penicillin for Christ's sake So we're dropping the charges But there is something I have to know In that tunnel, just before the explosion I thought that I saw... What's out there? - What do you think is out there? - OK. Fine. Whatever you're protecting? I hope it's worth is. |
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