an incident involve a black man who be hole up in a shack with his native american woman escalate after the man be kill by the town constable and a mexican who have serve in the u cavalry chase apache . thus open the film and set the stage for the story of valdez and the constable and who after kill the innocent man try to set up a collection for his woman and run into violent reaction from the wealthy and racist white rancher who want the man kill in the first place and and who run roughshod over his own men and the mexican who hire out to him . the black man and the native american woman and the mexican and the anglos and and then the rancher not so faithful mistress and give this movie a lot of great subplots to think about and but the central story of valdez first ask and then demand money for the dead man woman be simple yet effective a it draw out into chase and ambush while reveal the character for who they really be .