The Far Horizons

The Far Horizons is a 1955 American historical western film directed by Rudolph Maté about the Lewis and Clark Expedition. It is based on 1943 novel Sacajawea of the Shoshones by Della Gould Emmons and stars Fred MacMurray, Charlton Heston, Donna Reed and Barbara Hale.

The film is the only major American motion picture on the Lewis and Clark Expedition, although there have been television documentaries on the subject. Many details are fictional and historically inaccurate. It was re-released in 1962 by Citation Films Inc. as Untamed West in a double feature with Jungle Attack.

Plot
In 1803, the United States Congress approves the Louisiana Purchase from France. Meriwether Lewis is summoned to the White House by President Thomas Jefferson, who asks Lewis to lead an expedition and explore beyond the newly claimed land to the Pacific Ocean. Lewis reluctantly agrees and requests that his friend, William Clark, accompany him at equal rank. However, upon returning to Virginia to inform his love interest, Julia Hancock, Lewis is surprised to learn that Clark has proposed to Julia which causes tension between the men.

At Wood River, Lewis and Clark meet Sergeant Gass and the volunteers before departing in a keelboat. Clark learns that he is not officially promoted to captain as promised, but Lewis insists that he is. After months of traveling north on the Missouri River, the expedition encounters the Minnataree tribe and negotiate a peace offering. Sacagawea, a Shoshone woman kidnapped by the Minnataree, requests to go with Lewis and Clark to act as a guide and return to her people. Meanwhile, Charbonneau, a French man living in the tribe, joins the expedition, but secretly plans with the Minnataree to betray the group in exchange for Sacagawea.

Sacagawea learns of the Minnataree's plans to attack and escapes on horse to warn Lewis and Clark. Her mission is a success and the impressed captains have her join the expedition. At a fork in the river, Lewis and Clark divide up with plans to reunite upstream. Sacagawea accompanies Clark's team and later rescues his journal from falling in the river. After helping Clark overcome a fever, Sacagawea and Clark begin to fall in love with Clark renaming Sacagawea as "Janey".

The expedition reunites and Sacagawea finds her brother, Cameahwait. Lewis believes that Clark's feelings towards Sacagawea is putting the expedition at risk and, against Clark's wishes, insists that Sacagawea leave the expedition and stay with her people. However, she chases them along the river and is rejoined with Clark. Upset over Sacagawea's return, Lewis plans to have Clark court-martialed when they return home.

After the deaths of some crewman, Gass informs the captains that the crew is aware of the duo's tension as well as learning that they have ventured far past the Louisiana territory and wish to journey back. Lewis states that his mission is to reach the Pacific Ocean and the crew decide to continue on. Upon reaching the ocean, Clark tells Lewis that he is taking Sacagawea with him to Washington. Lewis retaliates by saying he has already logged Clark's insubordination in his journal for Jefferson.

In 1807, Lewis and Clark return to the White House and are congratulated by Jefferson. Clark introduces Sacagawea to the President, who thanks her for contributions for the expedition. Sacagawea is escorted away by Julia and the two women both learn of each other's feelings for Clark. Lewis decides not to punish Clark and tears out the final pages of his journal before submitting it to Jefferson. At a gala, Clark learns from Julia that Sacagawea has left goodbye letter for him stating that she is returning to her people.

Cast
As appearing in screen credits (main roles identified):


 * Fred MacMurray as Captain Meriwether Lewis
 * Charlton Heston as Lt. William Clark
 * Donna Reed as Sacagawea / "Janey"
 * Barbara Hale as Julia Hancock
 * William Demarest as Sgt. Gass
 * Alan Reed as Charbonneau
 * Eduardo Noriega as Cameahwait
 * Larry Pennell as Wild Eagle
 * Julia Montoya as Crow woman
 * Ralph Moody as Le Borgne
 * Herbert Heyes as President Thomas Jefferson
 * Lester Matthews as Mr. Hancock
 * Helen Wallace as Mrs. Marsha Hancock
 * Walter Reed as Cruzatte (helmsman)

Production
The film was known during production as The Blue Horizon. It was shot in Wyoming's Jackson Hole and Grand Teton National Park.

Reception
In 2011, Time Magazine rated The Far Horizons as one of the top ten most historically misleading films, in part due to its casting of Caucasian Donna Reed as Shoshone Sacagawea, and the creation of a romantic subplot between her character and William Clark, although Sacagawea's husband, French-Canadian trader Toussaint Charbonneau, was in real life also a member of the expedition.