Sorry for the topic goof up. I meant to put as the title: Were the U.S Cavalry and Army of the Old West honorable soldiers or bad guys like we see in the movies a lot?
A lot of times these days in movies it seems that the U.S. Cavalry and Army in the Old West is portrayed as rough, unprofessional, "bad guys" that hated Indians and are portrayed generally in a bad light. Recently when rewatching Dances with Wolves I was reminded that all of the officers except the lieutenant with the dark hair and beard were bad. He was good but just one man. The movie "Hostiles" presented a better portrayal of them but a conflicted one. I know there can always be a bad apple or element but I have a hard time believing that most of the U.S. Cavalry and Army was all bad back then. Were most of them honorable soldiers? How accurate are most movie portrayals of them?
A lot of times these days in movies it seems that the U.S. Cavalry and Army in the Old West is portrayed as rough, unprofessional, "bad guys" that hated Indians and are portrayed generally in a bad light. Recently when rewatching Dances with Wolves I was reminded that all of the officers except the lieutenant with the dark hair and beard were bad. He was good but just one man. The movie "Hostiles" presented a better portrayal of them but a conflicted one. I know there can always be a bad apple or element but I have a hard time believing that most of the U.S. Cavalry and Army was all bad back then. Were most of them honorable soldiers? How accurate are most movie portrayals of them?