Posted in: Movies | Tagged: Adam Beach, American Indian, Dances with Wolves, Geromino: An American Legend, graham greene, Indigenous Peoples, Last of the Mohicans, Native Americans, Thunderheart, Wes Studi, Windtalkers

Celebrating Native Americans: Five Must-See Films

While the story of Thanksgiving was about unity between colonists and Native Americans, let's celebrate the storytelling of these Indigenous Peoples through realm of film.

While Hollywood's not had a respectable track record with fair representation in hiring Native American actors in leading roles and lazily relying on crude stereotypes, these rare exceptions are gems worthy for inclusion for any cinema fan.

Dances with Wolves (1990)

Based on the Michael Blake novel of the same name, the story follows the tale of a Union Army lieutenant John Dunbar(Kevin Costner, who also directs), who travels to a military post out in the American frontier and forms a bond with the Lakota Indians learning of their ways.

In Dunbar's travels, he encounters the Pawnee and the Sioux tribes as he starts to understand their plight for self-preservation against the approaching Union Army.

While one can argue it promotes the "White Savior" trope in cinema as we would also see in films like Avatar and The Last Samurai, the education and promotion of the culture improved the visibility of the tribes offering a rare glimpse for general audiences of what they fought for. Also anyone who's upset at the stigma that it vilifies White Americans and the United States need to look one hard look in the mirror and make an attempt to learn about empathy since a film like Dances with Wolves offers perspective seldom seen in media since the "victors" often are the ones who write the history.

The film won seven Academy Awards including Best Picture. Graham Greene, who is Oneidan born in Ohsweken on the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario, was nominated for Best Supporting Actor. Cherokee and character actor Wes Studi plays a Pawnee warrior with an intimidating presence.

Despite the ultimate tragic tone of the film, it is a spiritual film of self-discovery and a definite recommendation of any cinema fan.

Last of the Mohicans (1992)

Based on the James Fenimore Cooper novel and George B. Seitz's 1936 film adaptation, the 1992 film takes place in 1757 during the French and Indian War at the Adirondack Mountains in the British colony of New York.

Following an ambush of a caravan carrying a colonel's two daughters, the remnants of the party are saved by Chingachgook (William Means), chief of the Mohican tribe and his white, adopted son "Hawkeye" (Daniel Day-Lewis), who killed the ambushing party, except for Magua (Studi), the Heron warrior guide who set up and betrayed the caravan.

Directed by Michael Mann, the film reflects more a traditional adventure with swashbuckling action and a romantic backdrop. The film has less to do with accurate portrayals of the tribes as opposed to the Mohicans getting caught up between the British, French and Heron forces blending self-sacrifice and conflict. Mann's film is more similar to the Seitz film than the novel.

Geronimo: An American Legend (1993)

The film focuses on Apache leader Geronimo (Studi) and provides a fictionalized account of the Apache Wars in the 19th century.

The film starts off as the Apache tribe gets relocated to US government sanctioned reservation. Not long after the internment, Geronimo and 30 Apache start a revolt, tired of the government's lies and broken promises.

Despite their respect for Geronimo, Lt. Charles Gatewood (Jason Patric) and Brigadier General George Cook (Gene Hackman) are to apprehend the chief.
Directed by Walter Hill and written by John Milius and Larry Gross, the film provided a more ambiguous narrative about the Apache and the US Army, blurring the lines of war. Hill wanted to show the soldiers and the Apache had more in common than displayed in most depictions as their research discovered from recovered documents from the participants.

"The Army is generally depicted as the enemy of the Apache, but in many cases, the people who were most sympathetic to their plight were those soldiers."

Mann's admirable attempt at humanizing both sides proved successful given how many westerns and war films lean to static characterizations to give the audience as clear side to root for. It also offered a rare opportunity for a Native American to star in a mainstream Hollywood picture.

Thunderheart (1992)

Thunderheart provides a crime drama setting loosely based on the 1973 Wounded Knee Incident, when followers of the American Indian Movement seized the South Dakota town of Wounded Knee in protesting the US government and their transgressions against the indigenous peoples.

Directed by Michael Apted and written by John Fusco, the film stars Val Kilmer, who plays Ray Levoi, an FBI agent with Sioux heritage, investigating a murder on a reservation in South Dakota.

Greene plays tribal police officer Walter Crow Horse, who helps in the investigation.

Most stories that focus on Native Americans are primarily around the 19th century and before, Thunderheart offers a contemporary look at what the tribes did and the ensuing activism to recover at least a nuance of dignity stripped away from them and their ancestors. Apted does an admirable job depicting the tension, bitterness, and strife about contemporary tribes deal with their situation within the reservations.

Windtalkers (2002)

Windtalkers is historical film set in World War II, which focuses on USMC Corporal Joe Enders (Nicolas Cage) mission to protect Private Ben Yahzee (Adam Beach of the Saulteaux First Nations) a Navajo code talker during the Pacific Theater against the Japanese.

I begrudgedly pick this film more as a necessary story even if the execution was left to be desired. As unfortunate as is, the film put a white actor like Cage to promote the film. The importance of the film was to shine the light on how invaluable the code talkers were with the Allies while putting their lives at stake for the greater good.

Director John Woo and writers  Joe Batteer and John Rice riddled with war clichés. One major criticism is Native Americans only had supporting roles and were not front and center as the film's title would indicate. Whether if it's Woo's decision or the producers' to focus more on the White characters is up in the air, but it was a lost opportunity to tell a more quality story.

If Windtalkers informed people about the code talkers, then I suggest the documentaries Navajo Code Talkers: The Epic Story and The Code Talkers: A Secret Code of Honor.

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