From Deseret News archives:

Movie revives debate about massacre

Published: Tuesday, May 1, 2007 12:08 a.m. MDT
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 
It's a story often left out of Western history: Pioneer-era Mormon settlers with painted faces and dressed as American Indians committing a vicious, execution-style killing of some 120 unarmed men, women and children who were part of a wagon train bound for California.

It happened Sept. 11, 1857, about 300 miles south of Salt Lake City in a place called Mountain Meadows on the old Spanish Trail.

Only 17 children — 6 years old and younger — were spared, most thought to be too young to remember or speak of what they saw.

The Mountain Meadows massacre is one of the darkest, most controversial moments in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For nearly 150 years, the depth of the church's involvement in the massacre of Capt. Alexander Fancher's Arkansas wagon train has been debated in dozens of books.

On June 22, Hollywood takes its turn telling the story with "September Dawn," an independent feature film from director Chris Cain ("Young Guns"). The film stars Academy Award winners Jon Voight and Terence Stamp, along with Lolita Davidovich.

"The reason I made the movie about this specific incident was not to blame anybody," Cain told The Associated Press. "At the core of the whole thing is religious fanaticism. I thought by making this movie we could take a look at how that evolved and how that can happen."

Story continues below
Cain co-wrote the screenplay with Carole Whang Schutter, weaving together historical accounts from nonfiction works and original Mormon sources — including the confession of John D. Lee, the only man tried and convicted in the murders — with a fictional love story between a girl from the wagon train and the son of the church leader who orchestrates the killings by the local militia.

The movie, like some scholars, makes the case that Brigham Young, then the president of the LDS Church, shared direct responsibility for the attack.

Church officials did not comment for this story but have said the movie is a work of fiction. The church, which erected a memorial on the massacre site in 1999, maintains Young had no role in the event and in fact sent word through a messenger that the Fancher wagon train should pass undisturbed.

"It's a story I've lived with my entire life, being a so-called gentile in Salt Lake City," bookseller Ken Sanders said. "It's my belief personally that any faithful, believing Mormon will never accept that Brigham Young had anything to do with the Mountain Meadows massacre. I simultaneously feel that there's no non-Mormon or gentile that will ever believe otherwise."

Recent comments

Seen the movie been to the site and read all the books and live in...

john d | Jan. 6, 2009 at 11:28 a.m.

to the review above...i'm pretty sure the writer's of the movie had...

john | Aug. 29, 2008 at 10:41 p.m.

Here is my problem with this movie. It is so overwhelmingly one...

Miz | Feb. 7, 2008 at 7:14 p.m.

Image
Douglas C. Pizac, Associated Press

Leroy Lee, a great-great grandson of John D. Lee, talks about the film "September Dawn" after viewing it Wednesday in Salt Lake.

previousnext

Latest comments

It should be a great game. Best of luck RSL.

5 questions with Andy Williams

Here's to Andy and RSL.

'Christmas Carols' mark milestones

Richard Wilkins is not only a talented thespian, he is also an immensely nice...

Midfield will be key for RSL

Go RSL. There are a lot of Seattle fans cheering for you.

I had to put up with a lot of stuff I did not like about George Bush while he...

"unfair act to deceive the opponent"??? so all those misdirection,...

I love how the very first comment on this board criticizes utah trolls yet...

My eye he does 20 min on the treadmill...but I will admit they have good...

"As a Christian I do not want to listen to a man with as questionable...

Salazar's Cafe is a very small, local restaurant owned by a husband and wife....

Advertisements