The Invaders
About The Invaders
Colonel James Bryson and a Sioux chief sign a treaty that bars further settlement of the remaining Sioux land. A year later the army is ordered to escort surveyors for a transcontinental railroad across that land. The colonel will not stop them. The Sioux, with Cheyenne allies, kill the surveyors and attack the fort.
Cast & crew
More about The Invaders
Francis Ford and Thomas H. Ince directed. C. Gardner Sullivan wrote the scenario. Ince produced it. Ray C. Smallwood photographed it. Mutual Film released it on November 29, 1912. Ince staged it at Inceville, a leased patch of Santa Monica built to stand in for the Dakotas. The Library of Congress print issued by the National Film Preservation Foundation in 2004 runs 41 minutes.
Themes
Background
The story is a broken treaty with the Sioux over a railroad survey, shot in California two years after Ince set up his studio ranch.
Making
Ince brought a Wild West show company to the Santa Monica ranch he called Inceville and used those riders and the hills for the Sioux and cavalry scenes.
Look
Ray C. Smallwood shot the three-reel Western at Inceville, including wide views with riders in the foreground and more riders far up the hill.
Preservation
The Library of Congress preserved a print. The National Film Preservation Foundation included it in the 2004 DVD set More Treasures from American Film Archives. Copies are on the Internet Archive and Wikimedia Commons.
Notes
- Francis Ford plays Colonel Bryson. William Eagle Shirt and Art Acord are in the cast. Ethel Grandin plays a leading role.
- A title card jumps the story a year, from the treaty signing to the railroad survey.
- The 2004 DVD is in the National Film Preservation Foundation set More Treasures from American Film Archives, 1894–1931.
Scenes
- Bryson and the Sioux chief sign the treaty in the post hall.
- Surveyors move onto the ceded-against land a year later.
- The Sioux and their allies ride on the fort.
Also available
- Internet Archive (the_invaders_1912)
- Wikimedia Commons (The Invaders (1912).webm)
- National Film Preservation Foundation DVD, More Treasures from American Film Archives (2004)
