The Last Command

In the '20s and '30s, directors came no bigger than Frank Lloyd: he helmed Cavalcade and Mutiny on the Bounty and won a couple of Oscars. Hardly remembered now, his career ended with this reconstruction of the siege of the Alamo. As with the John Wayne epic of 1960, it's a travesty of history, and focuses on Jim Bowie (Hayden) rather more than Davy Crockett (Hunnicutt). The message is the same as in Wayne's film - better Tex than Mex - though the production values are considerably less impressive. This is a Republic Studios Western, so don't look for thousands of extras. But Lloyd's old professionalism produces some good battle footage.