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Benjie(Brock Peters) is a black Union soldier returning home to New
Mexico after the Civil War. His former slaveowner McMasters(Burl
Ives) accepts him back as a son, and makes him a co-owner of his
ranch. However, Benjie runs into the prejudice and hatred of the
local townfolk, led by the wounded ex-Confederate Kolby(Jack Palance).
Rejected by the townfolk, Benjie hires White Feather(David Carridine)
and other members of the local Indian tribe to work on his ranch. He
takes an Indian woman, Robin Lightfoot(Nancy Kwan), to be his bride,
and they marry in the white man's church. Benjie wants to live
peaceably, but when Kolby and his cohorts try to take cattle, his
ranch, and his wife away from him, he resorts to "the Law of the West"
to defend what's his. A searing Western with strong racial overtones,
The McMasters was released in two versions: in one the
McMasters defeat Kolby and his gang, in the other, Kolby triumphs.
Nancy Kwan has the unusual role of a Native American in this film, the
demure but strong woman that Benjie rubs noses with.
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Credits
