Journey to Shiloh

{{Infobox film

| name = Journey to Shiloh

| image = File:Journey to Shiloh.jpg

| caption =

| director = William Hale

| producer = Howard Christie

| based_on = Journey to Shiloh by Will Henry

| screenplay = Gene L. Coon

| starring = James Caan
Michael Sarrazin
Brenda Scott

| music = David Gates

| cinematography = Enzo A. Martinelli

| editing = Edward W. Williams

| color_process = Technicolor

| studio = Universal Pictures

| distributor = Universal Pictures

| released = {{Film date|1968|05|10|New York City|1968|05|17|United States}}

| runtime = 101 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English

| budget =

}}

Journey to Shiloh is a 1968 American Western adventure film directed by William Hale and starring James Caan, Michael Sarrazin and Brenda Scott.{{cite book|last1=Lisanti|first1=Tom|title=Fantasy Femmes of Sixties Cinema|page=274|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-kWeCQAAQBAJ&q=%22Journey+to+Shiloh%22+film&pg=PA274|isbn=9781476601168|date=2012-06-21|publisher=McFarland }} The film is based on the novel of the same name by Will Henry first published in 1960.{{cite book|url=https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Shiloh-Will-Henry/dp/B000JZGXS4|title=Journey to Shiloh|first=Will|last=Henry|authorlink=Henry Wilson Allen|publisher=Random House|location=New York City|edition=1st|year=1960|asin=B000JZGXS4}}

Plot

During the American Civil War, seven young Texans in the Confederate army, the Concho County Comanches, journey to Shiloh, Tennessee where a major battle is about to take place. Along the way they encounter many perilous adventures.{{cite news|url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/97335/Journey-to-Shiloh/overview|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110426032900/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/97335/Journey-to-Shiloh/overview|url-status=dead|archive-date=2011-04-26|title=Journey to Shiloh Review|location=New York City|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=The New York Times|author=Sandra Brennan|date=2011|accessdate=2012-02-12}}

J.C. decides he no longer wants to follow Buck and takes his money and leaves. Buck finds him just as he is shot and killed by card sharks. Buck rejoins the remaining five and takes a stage to Shreveport, Louisiana, on the way picking up a run-away slave. Out of duty they deliver him to the next town's sheriff, only to see him hung on the road out of town, despite promises he would be returned to his owner.

In Shreveport, Buck meets and makes love to Gabrielle DuPrey, but leaves her to lead his men to join the Confederate Army in Richmond, Virginia.

After being forced to join Braxton Bragg's army and joining the Battle of Shiloh, Little Bit Lucket dies of disease. Todo dies gunshot, Eubie Bell dies in a mortar attack and Willie Bill is shot in the head - all but Miller and Buck are killed in the battle or die of wounds. Miller deserts and is shot by a bounty hunter and dies with Buck by his side, trapped in a barn with the army closing in on them. Before Miller dies, he encourages Buck to leave the army, go get the girl he met in Shreveport and return to Texas.

Sgt. Barnes, who had befriended the Texans, convinces Gen. Bragg to allow Buck to return alone back to Texas instead of being shot as a deserter, the last survivor of the seven who set out for Richmond.

Cast

James Caan as Buck Burnett
Michael Sarrazin as Miller Nalls
Brenda Scott as Gabrielle DuPrey
Don Stroud as Todo McLean
Paul Petersen as J.C. Sutton
Michael Burns as Eubie Bell
Michael Vincent as Little Bit Lucket
Harrison Ford as Willie Bill Bearden
John Doucette as General Braxton Bragg
Noah Beery as Sgt. Mercer Barnes
Tisha Sterling as Airybelle Sumner
James Gammon as Tellis Yeager
Brian Avery as Carter Claiborne
Clarke Gordon as Colonel Mirabeau Cooney
Robert Pine as Collins
Sean Kennedy as Curtis Claiborne
Wesley Lau as Colonel Boykin
Chet Stratton as Mr. Claiborne
Bing Russell as Greybeard
Lane Bradford as Case Pettibone
Rex Ingram as Jacob
Myron Healey as Sheriff Briggs
Eileen Wesson as Ella Newsome
Albert Popwell as Samuel

Reception

=Critical reception=

TV Guide gave it a negative review, scoring it 2/5, and finding it too talky despite a small number of good action scenes; they also found attempts to establish parallels to the Vietnam War did not work.{{cite web|title=Journey to Shiloh|url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/journey-to-shiloh/review/2030009144/|website=TV Guide}}

Filmink magazine said "the only interesting thing about the film, which stinks of cheap TV and dodgy craft, is that cast and Caan's terrible wig."{{cite magazine|magazine=Filmink|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/the-stardom-of-james-caan/|title=The Stardom of James Caan|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|date=September 27, 2022|access-date=December 23, 2024|archive-date=April 12, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230412052225/https://www.filmink.com.au/the-stardom-of-james-caan/|url-status=live}}