rough rider and john milius tribute to the legendary spanish american war volunteer unit head by future president theodore roosevelt and can be nearly consider a prequel to his classic and the wind and the lion . certainly no director have ever present a rich portrait of one of the most complex and fascinate men of the twentieth century than milius have and in these two film . when war fever against the spanish grip the nation and fuel by the inflammatory headline of newspaper publisher william randolph hearst ( flamboyantly play by george hamilton ) and young teddy roosevelt ( tom berrenger and who be superb ) and exhibit the headstrong energy he be famous for and decides he have to be a part of it . get veteran apache fighter col. leonard wood ( real life film military adviser dale dye ) to command his unit and roosevelt put out a call for volunteer and and his name and already famous nation wide and draw an extraordinary mix of personality and from bank robber ( brad johnson and in one of his best performance ) and to a frontier marshal ( sam elliott and who would play a similar character in we be soldier ) and to indian ( bob primeaux and david midthunder and both excellent ) and to a group of ivy leaguers ( lead by law and order star chris noth ) . at a white house meeting and president william mckinley ( a frail look brian keith and who have portray t. r. in the wind and the lion ) and his secretary of state and john hay ( r. lee ermey ) and appoint southern congressman fight joe wheeler to lead the american force and with the rank of general ( primarily to appease a south still bitter over the civil war ) . an ex confederate officer ( portray by gary busey and who nearly steal the film ) and wheeler take a liking to wood and roosevelt and and to black jack pershing buffalo soldier ( the famous black regiment ) and over the regular yankee and and do his best to give them preference and while offer his unreconstructed advice . with the eye of the world on them and the rough rider train ( elliott say and bluntly and i will teach them to become killer ) and bond ( the cowboy be stun when ivy leaguer noth easily break a stallion and then be tell that he be a champion polo player ) and and show complete devotion to the eccentric but beloved roosevelt ( he one of u and one cowboy say and proudly ) . despite a series of snafu ( the horse get leave behind and turn the unit into a wouldismounted cavalry ) and the rough rider make it to cuba and and the thick of battle . with legendary personality hearst and fredric remington ( nick chinlund ) and stephen crane ( adam storke ) and and edward marshall ( william katt ) chronicle their action and roosevelt and his unit would be bloody but unbowed and achieve immortality and with the buffalo soldier beside them and at the battle of san juan hill . tell a a flashback narrate by brad johnson and rough rider emerge a a remarkable history of a group of remarkable men . at the film center be and of course and berrenger remarkable portrayal of teddy roosevelt and who and experience war first hand and matures dramatically and develop the courage and strength of character that would soon make him a truly great president . john milius prof and again and that he be one of america most underrated director . rough rider be superb .