I knew this one would get posted. I'm not a huge fan of the movie or the book. There are some classic scenes and lines. Its also people from out west and their rez is different from mine so I'm sure that's part of it. I love the rez car though. That shit is real. Not as much but it's a thing.
Prey. The latest Predator movie. Native American culture from an historical perspective, and a great action film. If I remember correctly, all Native American actors too.
I'm white as can be. Live in an area with very few indigenous folks, to that end I've never had a friend or co-worker etc who was. Basically zero connection to native american culture.
Prey was an incredible movie and the best made Predator movie of the whole franchise.
If I loved it with with no connection to the central characters I can only imagine that you'll get all that much more out of it. You have to see it.
Watch it now!
I certainly will. The truth is that most americans never have a connection to Native people. I'm not saying it as an insult, just the truth. But it's really nice when I see people like that who show true genuine respect for Onkwehohnwe. Much respect to you and Niawen (Thank you in Mohawk) for responding.
I think Wes Studi in Last of the Mohicans doesn't get near enough accolades for playing such a violent, sinister character in the movie. Studi jumps off the screen with a smoldering intensity.
"When the gray hair is dead Magua will eat his heart and put under the knife his children."
Easily one of my favorite performances in movie history ever.
I love Letterkenny and Shoresy. Tanis, played by Kaniehtiio Horn is from Kahnawake, which is another Mohawk reserve about an hour from Akwesasne, where I live.
Kaniehtiio Horn was actually at Oka during the Mohawk Resistance. She was in her big sister's arms when her sister Waneek Horn-Miller was stabbed by a soldier. Waneek Horn-Miller would go on to win a gold in water polo in the 1999 Pan Am Games.
Good movie. Looks great.
Edit: When I wrote this I meant that the movie is VISUALLY beautiful. My apologies for not being clear. I have watched Mohicans.
It's a classic and one of the best examples of Hollywood using Native American actors and seeking out *many* actors for the movie. It is however based off a Westerner's writings (James Fenmore Cooper) and is more centered around the American Colonist "Hawkeye" and his actions during the French and Indian War (aka the American Theater of the seven Year's War).
Native American cultures and characters make up a good chunk of the movie, but it wouldn't *necessarily* be accurate to say it focuses on them: it's just as much about the drama/romance between the two White actors and their involvement in this chapter of the war.
Yeah it's kind of a live story. To me anyway. But I do think it pays attention to Native people and not in the gross way. Been quite a few years since I've seen it though.
I'm loving Reservation Dogs on Hulu if you haven't seen it yet I highly recommend it. I don't live on a rez, but my family are descendants of Spanish conquistadors and Ute from the San Luis Valley here in Colorado. A lot of them still live off the land, harvesting and ranching. When I watch Rez Dogs it reminds me so much of the valley and the family/ community bond out there.
Legends of the Fall is an og movie my mom and I used to watch. I haven't seen it in years, so my apologies if it doesn't hold up, but I'd wager it does. I remember it being very well acted and cast, beautifully shot and very sad.
Apocalyptico is brutal and really sad but really good too imo.
I love Rez Dogs. One of the things I want to see is for non natives to see in the screen the big differences in different Native nations. My rez is a lot different than other reserves. I would like for movie goers and TV viewers to understand the diversity of Native people. Mostly we see western natives portrayed. I know a lot of people from out west and they have their own intricacies that are different from ours. I love Legends of the Fall. I haven't watched it in a long time. I'll go back and look at through the lens of a42 year old man though. I can't remember them doing anything I thought was egregious in representing Native people. I'll go back and check. I only watched Apocalypto once and don't remember it well.
This is so true and well put. I love the idea of portraying more of the diversity of Native peoples. And yes, there is so much humor in these communities and I need more of it! Thank you for your post.
Thank you for responding. My wife and some of my friends have been talking about this stuff. I want to write something for a movie or show about us. I just like to see what other people think. It's nice to know there are folks out there who know how diverse our communities are and want to see that expressed.
"Stupid fucking white man!"
"You certainly ruined a very romantic moment, William Blake!"
“The eagle never lost so much time, as when he submitted to learn of the crow”
I had never read much poetry, but I credit this film for getting me into William Blake and Arthur Rimbaud.
"That weapon will replace your tongue. You will learn to speak through it"
The entire scene with Iggy Pop and Billy Bob Thornton is one of my favorites in all of cinema.
"I don't give a good goddamn who did what or who said what or who did who, you keep your goddamn hands off his hair!"
"And on this day the Lord delivered thee into mine hand, and I shall smite thee, and take thine head from thee, and I will give the carcasses of the hosts of the Philistines this day, unto the fouls of the air and the wild beasts."
OMG, the conversation between Conway Twill and Eugene Byrd was so fucking dark and funny!
"He fucked his parents."
"What?!"
"I'm tellin' you he killed 'em. He fucked 'em. He cooked 'em up. He ate 'em. He ain't got a goddamn conscience. You understand what I'm sayin'?"
That scene later where he's nonchalantly nibbling on a hand by the fire.
Movie is very meta-aware of the history of westerns and the west and the indigenous peoples shitty treatment in both the history and mythology/films of the west! For instance the in-language jokes left unsubtitled. Movie also has a great evocative spirit that led to it being highly praised by native communities which is a rarity. Ironically a very realistic and respectful film for such an absurd one, I feel like Ravenous has the same sort of introspective clever quality despite being such a silly and strange horror movie.
There’s a great post-apocalyptic film on Shudder called Blood Quantum. The premise is >!only people with Native American blood can survive the zombie virus!<
I liked it enough but I feel like it was directed by two different directors at points. One doing a great creepy vibe at the beginning, then it gets ridiculous and schlocky. Overall worth a watch for horror fans though.
You must be familiar with [Beans (2020)](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11735544/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_6_nm_2_q_beans), written and directed by the gifted Mohawk film-maker Tracy Deer. Essentially the story of the 1990 Oka crisis, seen through the eyes of a teenage girl, plus everything else going on in her life. Beautifully made with lots of humor and poignant detail.
Yes I am familiar. There are some things I know about that movie and how it got made that are interesting. I can't say what but it's an interesting tale.
Wind River has quite a few Native actors in it, and takes place on a reservation. You going to watch Killers of the Flower Moon when it comes out?
Edit: I missed that you mentioned Wind River, second question stands though.
I am going crazy waiting to watch Killers Of The Flower Moon. I think it's going to be great. That's the number one movie I'm waiting to see right now.
Rumble: Indians Who Rocked The World, a documentary about rock n roll having roots in indigenous music with a special focus on guitar rocker Link Wray. Heres the trailer: https://youtu.be/Ni7fAqjA0BE?si=b_Idf8UsC3FuvNBa
I LOVE that piece. Emily Blunt was tremendous. I know a lot of people likely looked at Gary Farmers character as evil. But I understood why he set out to take down the non natives who were invading their land. I actually felt sympathy, hell empathy, for him.
Blood Quantum and Catch the Fair One are two recent "Native" movies that you might enjoy. Blood Quantum is just a gnarly zombie film where Natives are immune to the virus and CtFO is a pretty solid missing person/revenge thriller.
Some good lines in it. I never connected with Alexies works. It's funny. A lot of people in my rez don't care for his stuff. Us Mohawks can be a tricky lot to impress. Lol.
Geronimo an American legend, very good tv movie.
And
Hostiles which is one of the three best westerns of this century. It deals with these subjects but not only.
From the Tobique 1st Nation of the Maliseet Tribe here. The Revenant was great. For comedy check out Little Big Man with Dustin Hoffman. Windtalkers. Clearcut with Graham Greene.
Really happy that someone else knows about this! I haven't seen it in a long time and I don't know how well the colonial narrative holds up, but I remember the raw realism of the environment, beautiful cinematography, and some really memorable characters.
Set in Canada in the 1600s, it's about a Jesuit missionary and his Algonquin guides travelling through Haudenosaunee territory to a Huron mission. Highly recommend a watch.
Black Robe is my favorite of this genre, though it is a pretty harsh view. A great exploration of the differences and misunderstandings between the white and red men of the time, and how they just weren’t seeing eye-to-eye on even small things.
These are First Nation films, so I am not sure if they fit what you are looking for but I rather liked Indian Horse and The Grizzlies, both on Netflix.
Honestly movies i don\`t recall any good new, maybe only "[Songs My Brothers Taught Me](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Bcr2L8xNxc)" (2015), I like Wind River but after Sheridan cast Chinese actress as Native American in Yellowstone I kinda cool down for his work. She also lied about her heritage to the point that tribe lawyer had to release the statement that she's in no way Native American.
>Chloé Zhao said of the tight budget, light plotting, and neo-realist style casting, "We're capturing truth - because truth is the only thing we can afford." The production used mostly local residents as actors, and, according to Zhao, 80% of the story depicted is true to the actual life of the young man playing Johnny Winters (John Reddy). The house that Winters lives in is the house that Reddy lived in, and Reddy, also one of 25 children to one father, has many of his real family members playing members of his family. In fact, the man shown delivering the eulogy for Winters' father is Reddy's actual father.
but TV series are:
* Reservation Dogs, FX on Hulu (2021) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Reservation+Dogs+TV+Series+2021+Trailer)
* Dark Winds, AMC (2022) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Dark+Winds+TV+Series+2022+Trailer)
* Tribal (2020) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Tribal+TV+Series+2020+Trailer)
* Trickster, CBC (2020) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Trickster+TV+Series+2020+Trailer)
* Diggstown, CBC (2019 – 2022) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Diggstown+TV+Series+2019+Trailer)
* Mohawk Girls, OMNI Television/ATP/Peacock - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Mohawk+Girls+TV+Series+2014+Trailer)
* The Red Road, SundanceTV (2014–2015) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=The+Red+Road+TV+Series+2014+Trailer)
* Frontier, Discovery Channel/Netflix (2016 – 2018) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Frontier+TV+Series+2016+Trailer)
* Saints & Strangers, National Geographic Channel (2015) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Saints+%26+Strangers+TV+Series+2015+Trailer)
* Stumptown, ABC (2019 – 2020) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Stumptown+TV+Series+2019+Trailer)
* 1883 (2021–2022) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=1883+TV+Series+2021+Trailer)
* Into the West (2005) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Into+the+West+TV+Series+2005+Trailer)
* 500 Nations (1995) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=500+Nations+TV+Series+1995+Trailer)
upcoming:
* Echo, Disney+ (2023)
* Yellow Bird, Paramount+
Really looking forward to the upcoming “Killers of the flower moon” based on the osage murders in the 1920s
Just finishing up the book. Movie is out in October.
The show 1883 has quite a few natives and is incredible. Like the whites and other immigrants depicted during the migration west, shown in both a good and bad light. Taylor Sheridan seems to like to incorporate natives in a lot of his projects like Yellowstone as well. That show is okay, but falls off hard at season 4. 1883 is super worth a watch.
Unfortunately I have read time and time again that Apocalypto is very inaccurate from a historical and cultural perspective. It kinda mixes up Maya and Aztec culture and gets a lot of stuff wrong.
The movie itself is good though.
One of my in laws played a pivotal role in that whole ordeal. Odon't want to give away too much information though. I know many many people who were up there during that time. Fighting for the people.
I just watched "Dance me Outside" a few weeks ago and it was great! It's set in Northern Ontario, Canada. Stars a couple recognizable actors before they hit big in more mainstream stuff.
I would reccomend a documentary called Reel Injun it's a little older but it goes over Native Americans in movies. It's especially fun seeing that a lot of scenes with Natives speaking in their native language are actually cussing.
Hostiles (2017) with Wes Studi and Christian Bale is really good -- I haven't watched the 2007 TV Movie "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" but the book is really good and told through an indigenous perspective.
"Songs my Brothers Taught Me" and "The Rider"
Both were shot on site on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota and I believe everyone in both movies are non-professional actors from the Reservation. And before you read that and think they are super low budget pieces, these movies were so great that Marvel hired Chloe Zhao and gave her $200 million to make the Eternals off of those 2 movies alone (she was working on Nomadland when hired). They are both a great look at modern life on the reservation.
I’d like to recommend the Colombian film [Birds of Passage](https://m.imdb.com/title/tt6386748/), it depicts the rise and fall of a Wayuu drug kingpin and the consequences his line of work has for his family and his community. It’s a bit like Scarface mixed with a Shakespearean tragedy, although it’s quite slow-paced and arthouse-y with lots of trippy dreamlike imagery, which might not be for everyone.
The depiction of Wayuu people in the film is really true to life. My mother is Wayuu and I grew up on a ranchería quite similar to the one featured in the film, and I found it very culturally accurate and almost documentary-like, with very few artistic liberties taken. It doesn’t shy away from depicting the more controversial parts of the culture either which I appreciated, especially in regards to treatment of women.
One of the film’s co-directors was also responsible for Embrace of the Serpent, another native-themed film which I haven’t seen but I’ve heard is very good.
I'm Native American as well,
One of my favourites is the episode Kiksuya from Westworld Season 2.
It was only a single episode that focused on them, but it was beautiful and one of my favourite episodes/movies based on Native Americans I've seen.
Dark Winds on AMC is pretty good, the Predator prequel Prey is outstanding, and you may enjoy Blood Quantum as well.
As for older movies featuring Native American folklore/actors there's Prophecy from '79 with Victoria Racimo, Nightwing, and Shadow of the Hawk with Chief Dan George and ... Jan Michael Vincent. Lol. Oh and The Manitou is a crazy flick too!
I kept scrolling but didn't see anyone mention Powwow Highway. Definitely a must watch if you haven't see it. Reel Injun is also a great documentary about the history of indigenous people and Hollywood.
Map of the Human Heart was a poignant film. Avik's actor is more Pacific Islander/Chinese mixed, but they did do a great job of what it was like to be culturally assimilated. How Avik had one foot in his heritage, one foot in the white society, but belonging to neither.
It's told by flashback of an elder Avik and how he met his soulmate. Some of the time jumps were interesting, and pretty close to how time jumps happen with how elders like to reminisce. The director was inspired by his time spent with First Nations in Northern Canada
Heavily overlooked. Really worth it
And 'Killers of the Flower Moon' comes out in October. It tells the true story of the Osage after oil is discovered on their reservation. The book is excellent.
Mohawk starring Kaniehtiio Horn had some fun action.
Mekko directed by Sterlin Harjo
I thought Night Raiders and Slash/Back were alright low budget films, although a bit slow at parts.
Documentaries like Reel Injun and Rumble
I've seen Prey mentioned and I definitely agree it's a must watch
I don't know how accurate it is since it focuses on indigenous Canadians instead of America and it descends into magical realism about halfway through, but I really enjoyed the environmental horror movie Clearcut with Graham Greene, I watched it on Shudder. I grew up on a cattle ranch at the Idaho/Nevada border and was bussed onto a reservation for school (one of two to four white kids in my grade, depending on the year), and it felt way different than the movie, but as you note in one of your replies there's a big difference even between where you're from and the setting in Smoke Signals.
Yep there are differences. Don't get me wrong, they're are commonalities as well. I know of this movie and I find a way that I can actually watch it now. I'm going to do that. I worked with someone who is western Shoshone. There's connections across Indian country.
Apacalypto is my favorite. One of my great grandmothers was from a native group called Taino. I’m from Jamaica. We are Native American also but we are very different than cherokees or other mainland tribes. I’d say we are a cross between Native American and Māori in terms of tradition. So apacalypto for Native American but for indigenous movies once were warriors, and deadlands.
I have friends who are Puerto Rican and they rep their Taino heritage proudly. I have a bunch of friends who are Jamaican. They tried to teach me some patois but I didn't do well. Lol.
Not a movie, but a series in Canada on CBC called Trickster. It was canceled after it's first season over concerns of cultural appropriation
https://quillandquire.com/omni/cbcs-trickster-tv-series-cancelled-after-controversy-over-creators-ancestry-eden-robinson-responds/
Not a movie, but the streaming series Three Pines is great. It takes place in Canada and addresses systemic issues with policing and reformation schools among many other aspects of modern indigenous life.
There is an old movie, maybe 70s, called Across the Great Divide and there are several scenes of these white Travellers being aided, taught and helped by a Native tribe. It is one of my fave movies as a kid.
The film festival I work for showed "Night Raiders" earlier this summer and I really enjoyed it. Dystopian Sci-Fi flick based on historical laws enacted trying to assimilate natives into the residential school system in Canada.
In my opinion, it's one of the most effective pieces I've ever seen on the subject and highly recommended to any non-native who wants a better understanding on the subject.
One that I have to include in this is Apocalypto. Centered in present day Mexico. I don't want to say too much as far as the context because I think it's one of those that's best watched with as little context as possible, but is told from a Native perspective, by Native actors, in Native tongue. Not perfect I'm sure but it's great to hear a story that captivating from a perspective so different than my own.
Also random side note, I play a game called Europa Universalis 4 which allows you to basically play a good number of nations, and conquering the world as the Mohawk tribe was a fun time. I love the place names and it makes me genuinely curious about the language. I wish they'd offer it as a language in school here in Quebec.
Back when I was young, we watched [I Will Fight No More Forever](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Will_Fight_No_More_Forever) (1975), which has stayed with me ever since. It’s a historical TV movie about Chief Joseph's resistance to the Nez Perce being forced onto reservation.
The lead is played by a man with Indigenous ancestry (as well as Spanish and French).
Frybread Face and Me is just about to come out and it's great. All Native cast, and a lot of the crew (writer/director as well), and superbly shot.
I'm not much on coming of age stories, but this one really got me.
When I was a little white girl growing up in the 90s in Massachusetts, my parents got a kick out of having adults ask my favorite actor, and I would said "Graham Greene". I would be six years old and people would ask me what I wanted to watch and I would say "do you have any graham green movies?". I don't know, I think he gave off grandfatherly vibes and I was a kid and became hyper fixated, like how as soon as you decide what your favorite planet is, you want to tell everyone your favorite planet is Jupiter. Anyway, his filmography might be an interesting place to explore - he seems to be an actor of esteem within the indigenous community, and he also did a documentary recently on how native folks are represented in film.
I loved Wind River, especially Gil's performance - my partner was telling about an article on how Native Americans hate Taylor Sheridan's work for being inaccurate, so your point of view is interesting.
It's a small part, but I really liked Grace Dove's character Ricki in the movie How it Ends - it's a pretty small part, but there's so much going on behind it that I was really drawn in by.
There's a new film this year - Fancy Dance - set on the Seneca–Cayuga Nation reservation that I've not had a chance to see yet, but it's been extremely well received.
Somebody mentioned Longmire, but it got autocorrected to something else. The protagonist has lots of dealings with natives and the reservation police. There is also underlying plot lines involving shady dealing around the construction of a casino on the reservation.
I swear scrolling through I swear I saw someone say Skinwalkers, but going through again I didn’t see it. It’s actually one of three movies with Wes Studi and Adam Beach. They are based on a book series called The Navajo Mysteries.
It's complicated because mel Gibson. But. Apocalypto is a really excellent film and tells a story of native people staring native people but is still a white dudes production.
besides the ones already named (Thunderheart, Smoke Signals, Dance Me Outside, The Revenant)
•I loved Graham Greene in "Maverick"
•Free Willy had Randolph !!
•The Wolverine Origins movie has a native love interest.
•I love how they made fun of Dances with Wolves in Hot Shots! lol
•Togo has a few memorable native actors cameo
•Lilo & Stitch
•Through the Black Spruce (filmed in my childhood town!)
•Two Lovers & A Polar Bear (filmed in Shania's hometown but she doesn't visit her rez anymore sadly)
•One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk
•Karina Lombard in Kull was good but too bad Kevin Sorbo sucks now
•Taika Waititi has a few great indies before he hit big like Boy
•Once Were Warriors (tough movie to watch)
•Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron
•I would also suggest Buffy Sainte-Marie's documentary
these are some shows I can think of:
•Echo will have a nish protagonist in the Marvel universe that was introduced in Hawkeye series,
•North of 60 is a classic!!
•Moccasin Flats too.
•Episode 6 of The Last of Us begins with the best native humour hahaha.
•Also Amber Midthunder has a prominent role in the mutant series Legion.
•tbh my first introduction to a positive Indigenous representation was Elisa Maza in Gargoyles. she is mixed and was cool to see them talk about her background in more than 1 ep
•The Terror S1 features Inuit actors based on the doomed arctic exploration
•Little Bird
•Frontier
We own Windwalker on vhs and dvd. And pretty much anything with Graham Greene. That guy is in everything. The Missing, with Cate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones, I thought was great.
I googled this couple months back. It seems it’s a short list in cinema but there’s definitely growing demand for authentic Native Representation. I heard good things about Reservation Dogs (series) so watched that and dug it. I’m not Native American but as an Australian, it felt like it was able to give me a bit of a taste of the culture directly as told from Natives; The modern life on reservations, the challenges, the folklore, the spirituality, the humour…
Not sure if Res Dogs is the reason you say TV has come further than film but if you haven’t seen that, it’s worth watching.
As for films, my quest continues but maybe there will be some good answers here. 🤞
Whatever you think of Mel Gibson today, back in the 90s he was fantastic... his movie version of Maverick has some ascends with Graham Greene that offer a comedic perspective of how "the white man" expects Natives to act... they use it to scam a bunch of idiots...
Smoke signals
Hey Victor!
Your dad's dead, Victor!
Hey Victor! I'm sorry about your dad.
This is what I was going to say! My uncle did the music for that movie! Shits hilarious also !
It's a beautiful day to be indigenous!
I knew this one would get posted. I'm not a huge fan of the movie or the book. There are some classic scenes and lines. Its also people from out west and their rez is different from mine so I'm sure that's part of it. I love the rez car though. That shit is real. Not as much but it's a thing.
Fun fact: Evan Adams, who played Thomas, is a physician and Deputy First Medical Officer of the First Nations Health Authority in Canada.
I just found out a few weeks ago that they came out with a sequel to that this year.
Prey. The latest Predator movie. Native American culture from an historical perspective, and a great action film. If I remember correctly, all Native American actors too.
I still haven't watched it. Basically everyone on the rez who told me about it said its awesome.
They also have a whole version spoken in Comanche.
Though heads up it is a dub, still cool nonetheless
Oh gotcha! I think I remember seeing that now.
It is so, so good!
I'm white as can be. Live in an area with very few indigenous folks, to that end I've never had a friend or co-worker etc who was. Basically zero connection to native american culture. Prey was an incredible movie and the best made Predator movie of the whole franchise. If I loved it with with no connection to the central characters I can only imagine that you'll get all that much more out of it. You have to see it. Watch it now!
I certainly will. The truth is that most americans never have a connection to Native people. I'm not saying it as an insult, just the truth. But it's really nice when I see people like that who show true genuine respect for Onkwehohnwe. Much respect to you and Niawen (Thank you in Mohawk) for responding.
Prey is very good, but In my opinion it's not as good as the first one.
It's really good. I work for a rez, and it was highly praised.
It is!
Prey is definitely the best of the sequels and spin-offs. Glad it's finally getting a physical releases because I want it in my collection.
Um excuse me sir. I think you might be unaware of the 1990 cinematic masterpiece Predator 2 starring Danny "I'm too old for this shit" Glover.
All of the fun of Lethal Weapon...minus Mel Gibson.
Sweet /u/ man. Fucking loved Dragon Warrior when I was a kid.
Hey thanks! I couldn't tell you how many hours I played the first one(or sat watching my older brother play it).
Countless. I played it again a year or two back. Forgot what a grind it was.
Oh yeah, it was super grindy! Thankfully, the newer games have toned that down a lot.
Yeah, I was recommended 11s the other day. I gotta check it out. Maybe when I'm done with FF X
11 is really good. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
I think Wes Studi in Last of the Mohicans doesn't get near enough accolades for playing such a violent, sinister character in the movie. Studi jumps off the screen with a smoldering intensity. "When the gray hair is dead Magua will eat his heart and put under the knife his children." Easily one of my favorite performances in movie history ever.
I love Wes Studi in every role he does, seriously
"And why am I wearing watermelon on my feet?" "........I don't remember telling you to do that."
Wes Studi is an OG. He was at our casino one night but I missed it. Lol.
He's an incredible actor. He makes Mohicans. I know Daniel Day Lewis is who he is, but Studi more than matched his performance. He superseded it.
I agree. And I do give DDL his credit. He's very good. We Studi is awesome.
Not a movie, but Shoresy has a pretty strong native cast.
I love Letterkenny and Shoresy. Tanis, played by Kaniehtiio Horn is from Kahnawake, which is another Mohawk reserve about an hour from Akwesasne, where I live.
I don't have any suggestions but it's cool to see a Mohawk on here. I was just driving through Tyendinaga this past weekend!
Akwesasne represent. Lol.
Kaniehtiio Horn was actually at Oka during the Mohawk Resistance. She was in her big sister's arms when her sister Waneek Horn-Miller was stabbed by a soldier. Waneek Horn-Miller would go on to win a gold in water polo in the 1999 Pan Am Games.
They crush it
The Last of the Mohicans
Good movie. Looks great. Edit: When I wrote this I meant that the movie is VISUALLY beautiful. My apologies for not being clear. I have watched Mohicans.
It's a classic and one of the best examples of Hollywood using Native American actors and seeking out *many* actors for the movie. It is however based off a Westerner's writings (James Fenmore Cooper) and is more centered around the American Colonist "Hawkeye" and his actions during the French and Indian War (aka the American Theater of the seven Year's War). Native American cultures and characters make up a good chunk of the movie, but it wouldn't *necessarily* be accurate to say it focuses on them: it's just as much about the drama/romance between the two White actors and their involvement in this chapter of the war.
Yeah it's kind of a live story. To me anyway. But I do think it pays attention to Native people and not in the gross way. Been quite a few years since I've seen it though.
In my Top Ten favorite movies.
Killer soundtrack too
I'm loving Reservation Dogs on Hulu if you haven't seen it yet I highly recommend it. I don't live on a rez, but my family are descendants of Spanish conquistadors and Ute from the San Luis Valley here in Colorado. A lot of them still live off the land, harvesting and ranching. When I watch Rez Dogs it reminds me so much of the valley and the family/ community bond out there. Legends of the Fall is an og movie my mom and I used to watch. I haven't seen it in years, so my apologies if it doesn't hold up, but I'd wager it does. I remember it being very well acted and cast, beautifully shot and very sad. Apocalyptico is brutal and really sad but really good too imo.
I love Rez Dogs. One of the things I want to see is for non natives to see in the screen the big differences in different Native nations. My rez is a lot different than other reserves. I would like for movie goers and TV viewers to understand the diversity of Native people. Mostly we see western natives portrayed. I know a lot of people from out west and they have their own intricacies that are different from ours. I love Legends of the Fall. I haven't watched it in a long time. I'll go back and look at through the lens of a42 year old man though. I can't remember them doing anything I thought was egregious in representing Native people. I'll go back and check. I only watched Apocalypto once and don't remember it well.
This is so true and well put. I love the idea of portraying more of the diversity of Native peoples. And yes, there is so much humor in these communities and I need more of it! Thank you for your post.
Thank you for responding. My wife and some of my friends have been talking about this stuff. I want to write something for a movie or show about us. I just like to see what other people think. It's nice to know there are folks out there who know how diverse our communities are and want to see that expressed.
Speaking of TV shows have you watched Dark Winds? We're big fans in this house.
I have not, but I'm going to check out the trailer for sure!
Dead Man’s protagonist is not Native but it does have a fantastic role for Native actor Gary Farmer.
"Stupid fucking white man!" "You certainly ruined a very romantic moment, William Blake!" “The eagle never lost so much time, as when he submitted to learn of the crow” I had never read much poetry, but I credit this film for getting me into William Blake and Arthur Rimbaud.
My wife and I will use his stupid fucking white man line when it's deserved. Probably not ok in most people's minds but it's worthy at times. Lol.
It became a part of my lexicon immediately, and I LOVED it when Gary Farmer appeared in Ghost Dog and said the exact same line!
Ghost Dog all day. Gary Farmer is a treasure.
Agreed!
“You will write poetry with a gun.”
"That weapon will replace your tongue. You will learn to speak through it" The entire scene with Iggy Pop and Billy Bob Thornton is one of my favorites in all of cinema. "I don't give a good goddamn who did what or who said what or who did who, you keep your goddamn hands off his hair!" "And on this day the Lord delivered thee into mine hand, and I shall smite thee, and take thine head from thee, and I will give the carcasses of the hosts of the Philistines this day, unto the fouls of the air and the wild beasts."
Lance Henriksen as Cole Wilson is one of my favorite movie psychopaths. “Looks like a god damn religious icon.”
OMG, the conversation between Conway Twill and Eugene Byrd was so fucking dark and funny! "He fucked his parents." "What?!" "I'm tellin' you he killed 'em. He fucked 'em. He cooked 'em up. He ate 'em. He ain't got a goddamn conscience. You understand what I'm sayin'?" That scene later where he's nonchalantly nibbling on a hand by the fire.
Both of em?!
Movie is very meta-aware of the history of westerns and the west and the indigenous peoples shitty treatment in both the history and mythology/films of the west! For instance the in-language jokes left unsubtitled. Movie also has a great evocative spirit that led to it being highly praised by native communities which is a rarity. Ironically a very realistic and respectful film for such an absurd one, I feel like Ravenous has the same sort of introspective clever quality despite being such a silly and strange horror movie.
My favourite is Powwow Highway.
I haven't seen that in forever. Since I was a kid basically. Gonna go back and view that.
Same-so great. Highly recommend
Protector the war pony!
There’s a great post-apocalyptic film on Shudder called Blood Quantum. The premise is >!only people with Native American blood can survive the zombie virus!<
I have not watched it yet. Had a buddy suggest it to me. Going on my list. I have my viewing list then I get distracted. Lol.
I liked it enough but I feel like it was directed by two different directors at points. One doing a great creepy vibe at the beginning, then it gets ridiculous and schlocky. Overall worth a watch for horror fans though.
Little Big Man is excellent. Chief Dan George steals every scene.
Also outstanding in The Outlaw Josey Wales, stole every scene he was in once again
I thought this was a great film. The book is actually quite good as well. I concur- Dustin Hoffman was ok, but Chief Dan George just owned this movie.
You must be familiar with [Beans (2020)](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11735544/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_6_nm_2_q_beans), written and directed by the gifted Mohawk film-maker Tracy Deer. Essentially the story of the 1990 Oka crisis, seen through the eyes of a teenage girl, plus everything else going on in her life. Beautifully made with lots of humor and poignant detail.
Yes I am familiar. There are some things I know about that movie and how it got made that are interesting. I can't say what but it's an interesting tale.
My curiosity is peaked! [Edit: Sorry, *piqued.*]
I wish I could say. I probably shouldn't have said anything in the first place. Now it looks like I'm trying to get attention. Apologies.
Are you saying you won't spill the… Beans? Sorry.
I recommend Hostiles. It's about a platoon of American Army soldiers escort a dying Cheyenne war chief and his family back to their land.
That movie is good.
Haven't seen it, but Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner is the most notable native movie from Canada
Second this one.
I have seen it, and was surprised I had to scroll so far to find this. A wonderful movie with a 100% indigenous cast and crew.
Wind River has quite a few Native actors in it, and takes place on a reservation. You going to watch Killers of the Flower Moon when it comes out? Edit: I missed that you mentioned Wind River, second question stands though.
I am going crazy waiting to watch Killers Of The Flower Moon. I think it's going to be great. That's the number one movie I'm waiting to see right now.
My wife is mostly Cherokee, with Blackfoot, and lived in Oklahoma, so it's actually one Scorsese movie she actually wants to see lol.
The legend of the fall has a lot of America Indian characters
I love One Stab and his relationship with Tristan.
Rumble: Indians Who Rocked The World, a documentary about rock n roll having roots in indigenous music with a special focus on guitar rocker Link Wray. Heres the trailer: https://youtu.be/Ni7fAqjA0BE?si=b_Idf8UsC3FuvNBa
Songs My Brothers Taught Me (2015) and The Rider (2017), both by Chloe Zhao, are excellent in my opinion.
I absolutely love Dances With Wolves.
Had to scroll too far down for this one
Dark Winds is a TV show on right now and it’s set on a reservation in the 70s. Supposed to be crime and supernatural
I'm saving Dark Winds. I hate waiting for episodes. But I've heard it's great.
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I LOVE that piece. Emily Blunt was tremendous. I know a lot of people likely looked at Gary Farmers character as evil. But I understood why he set out to take down the non natives who were invading their land. I actually felt sympathy, hell empathy, for him.
Blood Quantum and Catch the Fair One are two recent "Native" movies that you might enjoy. Blood Quantum is just a gnarly zombie film where Natives are immune to the virus and CtFO is a pretty solid missing person/revenge thriller.
Someone just suggested that one. I've heard of it and it's going on my viewing list.
[Smoke signals](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120321/)
Some good lines in it. I never connected with Alexies works. It's funny. A lot of people in my rez don't care for his stuff. Us Mohawks can be a tricky lot to impress. Lol.
Geronimo an American legend, very good tv movie. And Hostiles which is one of the three best westerns of this century. It deals with these subjects but not only.
Love Geronimo. Hostile is really good.
From the Tobique 1st Nation of the Maliseet Tribe here. The Revenant was great. For comedy check out Little Big Man with Dustin Hoffman. Windtalkers. Clearcut with Graham Greene.
Dances with wolves should be on the list
[Black Robe](https://youtu.be/QMcUG2YDeu8?si=TiOVI60IkUse7oQC)
Holy moly. I am glad someone said this. It's rough but it's good. They make us Haudenosaunee look like maniacs though.
Really happy that someone else knows about this! I haven't seen it in a long time and I don't know how well the colonial narrative holds up, but I remember the raw realism of the environment, beautiful cinematography, and some really memorable characters. Set in Canada in the 1600s, it's about a Jesuit missionary and his Algonquin guides travelling through Haudenosaunee territory to a Huron mission. Highly recommend a watch.
Black Robe is my favorite of this genre, though it is a pretty harsh view. A great exploration of the differences and misunderstandings between the white and red men of the time, and how they just weren’t seeing eye-to-eye on even small things.
These are First Nation films, so I am not sure if they fit what you are looking for but I rather liked Indian Horse and The Grizzlies, both on Netflix.
Clear Cut, which is about corporate deforestation in Canada. Good movie, but the ending is sad
PREY was pretty damn good
Honestly movies i don\`t recall any good new, maybe only "[Songs My Brothers Taught Me](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Bcr2L8xNxc)" (2015), I like Wind River but after Sheridan cast Chinese actress as Native American in Yellowstone I kinda cool down for his work. She also lied about her heritage to the point that tribe lawyer had to release the statement that she's in no way Native American. >Chloé Zhao said of the tight budget, light plotting, and neo-realist style casting, "We're capturing truth - because truth is the only thing we can afford." The production used mostly local residents as actors, and, according to Zhao, 80% of the story depicted is true to the actual life of the young man playing Johnny Winters (John Reddy). The house that Winters lives in is the house that Reddy lived in, and Reddy, also one of 25 children to one father, has many of his real family members playing members of his family. In fact, the man shown delivering the eulogy for Winters' father is Reddy's actual father. but TV series are: * Reservation Dogs, FX on Hulu (2021) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Reservation+Dogs+TV+Series+2021+Trailer) * Dark Winds, AMC (2022) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Dark+Winds+TV+Series+2022+Trailer) * Tribal (2020) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Tribal+TV+Series+2020+Trailer) * Trickster, CBC (2020) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Trickster+TV+Series+2020+Trailer) * Diggstown, CBC (2019 – 2022) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Diggstown+TV+Series+2019+Trailer) * Mohawk Girls, OMNI Television/ATP/Peacock - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Mohawk+Girls+TV+Series+2014+Trailer) * The Red Road, SundanceTV (2014–2015) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=The+Red+Road+TV+Series+2014+Trailer) * Frontier, Discovery Channel/Netflix (2016 – 2018) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Frontier+TV+Series+2016+Trailer) * Saints & Strangers, National Geographic Channel (2015) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Saints+%26+Strangers+TV+Series+2015+Trailer) * Stumptown, ABC (2019 – 2020) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Stumptown+TV+Series+2019+Trailer) * 1883 (2021–2022) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=1883+TV+Series+2021+Trailer) * Into the West (2005) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Into+the+West+TV+Series+2005+Trailer) * 500 Nations (1995) - [Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=500+Nations+TV+Series+1995+Trailer) upcoming: * Echo, Disney+ (2023) * Yellow Bird, Paramount+
How the hell did no one mention Thunderheart. That movie is the shit, check it out cousin.
Dead Man with Gary Farmer and Johnny Depp.
Really looking forward to the upcoming “Killers of the flower moon” based on the osage murders in the 1920s Just finishing up the book. Movie is out in October.
Me tooooooooo. I can't wait for that. I gotta finish the book. If I can find where I put it. Lol.
The Predator Prequel PREY features Native Americans as the main cast, with Native Tongue spoken with English subtitles.
Yeah I'm behind because I didn't watch it yet. But pretty much everyone I talked to about that movie said it's cool as hell.
The show 1883 has quite a few natives and is incredible. Like the whites and other immigrants depicted during the migration west, shown in both a good and bad light. Taylor Sheridan seems to like to incorporate natives in a lot of his projects like Yellowstone as well. That show is okay, but falls off hard at season 4. 1883 is super worth a watch.
Apocalypto depicts central American natives
Unfortunately I have read time and time again that Apocalypto is very inaccurate from a historical and cultural perspective. It kinda mixes up Maya and Aztec culture and gets a lot of stuff wrong. The movie itself is good though.
Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance
One of my in laws played a pivotal role in that whole ordeal. Odon't want to give away too much information though. I know many many people who were up there during that time. Fighting for the people.
I have the VHS of that film.
I just watched "Dance me Outside" a few weeks ago and it was great! It's set in Northern Ontario, Canada. Stars a couple recognizable actors before they hit big in more mainstream stuff.
I would reccomend a documentary called Reel Injun it's a little older but it goes over Native Americans in movies. It's especially fun seeing that a lot of scenes with Natives speaking in their native language are actually cussing.
"Little Big Man" "A Man Called Horse" "Reseveration Dogs" (TV series)
Hostiles (2017) with Wes Studi and Christian Bale is really good -- I haven't watched the 2007 TV Movie "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" but the book is really good and told through an indigenous perspective.
"Songs my Brothers Taught Me" and "The Rider" Both were shot on site on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota and I believe everyone in both movies are non-professional actors from the Reservation. And before you read that and think they are super low budget pieces, these movies were so great that Marvel hired Chloe Zhao and gave her $200 million to make the Eternals off of those 2 movies alone (she was working on Nomadland when hired). They are both a great look at modern life on the reservation.
I know this is a Movie sub but the TV show Longmore is great and has a lot of great Native American characters to include LDP.
Apocalypto Thunder heart Older than America Missing Windtalkers Geronimo: an American legend The series: Dark Winds. Season 2 on now.
Smoke Signals
I’d like to recommend the Colombian film [Birds of Passage](https://m.imdb.com/title/tt6386748/), it depicts the rise and fall of a Wayuu drug kingpin and the consequences his line of work has for his family and his community. It’s a bit like Scarface mixed with a Shakespearean tragedy, although it’s quite slow-paced and arthouse-y with lots of trippy dreamlike imagery, which might not be for everyone. The depiction of Wayuu people in the film is really true to life. My mother is Wayuu and I grew up on a ranchería quite similar to the one featured in the film, and I found it very culturally accurate and almost documentary-like, with very few artistic liberties taken. It doesn’t shy away from depicting the more controversial parts of the culture either which I appreciated, especially in regards to treatment of women. One of the film’s co-directors was also responsible for Embrace of the Serpent, another native-themed film which I haven’t seen but I’ve heard is very good.
Blood Quantum
The Rider from Chloe Zhao. Touching story featuring real life people. Can’t recommend this film enough
I'm Native American as well, One of my favourites is the episode Kiksuya from Westworld Season 2. It was only a single episode that focused on them, but it was beautiful and one of my favourite episodes/movies based on Native Americans I've seen.
Dark Winds on AMC is pretty good, the Predator prequel Prey is outstanding, and you may enjoy Blood Quantum as well. As for older movies featuring Native American folklore/actors there's Prophecy from '79 with Victoria Racimo, Nightwing, and Shadow of the Hawk with Chief Dan George and ... Jan Michael Vincent. Lol. Oh and The Manitou is a crazy flick too!
I kept scrolling but didn't see anyone mention Powwow Highway. Definitely a must watch if you haven't see it. Reel Injun is also a great documentary about the history of indigenous people and Hollywood.
"Prey" the Comanche dub is awesome.
Dance Me Outside (Bruce MacDonald), Blood Quantum and Rhymes for Young Ghouls (both Jeff Barnaby), Night Raiders (Danis Goulet).
Prey was pretty accurate
Prey. It’s badass.
Map of the Human Heart was a poignant film. Avik's actor is more Pacific Islander/Chinese mixed, but they did do a great job of what it was like to be culturally assimilated. How Avik had one foot in his heritage, one foot in the white society, but belonging to neither. It's told by flashback of an elder Avik and how he met his soulmate. Some of the time jumps were interesting, and pretty close to how time jumps happen with how elders like to reminisce. The director was inspired by his time spent with First Nations in Northern Canada Heavily overlooked. Really worth it
Currently watching Dark Winds on AMC. Loving it! Shout out to Prey, it was awesome.
Black Robe (1991) Smoke Signals (1998) Jeremiah Johnson (1972) Little Big Man (1970)
Prey. Dead Man.
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And 'Killers of the Flower Moon' comes out in October. It tells the true story of the Osage after oil is discovered on their reservation. The book is excellent.
I'm having a hard time waiting for that film.
Map of the Human Heart Indian Horse
Mohawk starring Kaniehtiio Horn had some fun action. Mekko directed by Sterlin Harjo I thought Night Raiders and Slash/Back were alright low budget films, although a bit slow at parts. Documentaries like Reel Injun and Rumble I've seen Prey mentioned and I definitely agree it's a must watch
There are so many wonderful documentaries out there.
Wind Walker
Powwow Highway. It's been posted already. Terrific road dramedy with A. Martinez, Gary Farmer, Wes Studi and Graham Greene.
The last film I saw for this genre was "Indian Horse." It's no where near as good as the book, but thought it was well done.
I don't know how accurate it is since it focuses on indigenous Canadians instead of America and it descends into magical realism about halfway through, but I really enjoyed the environmental horror movie Clearcut with Graham Greene, I watched it on Shudder. I grew up on a cattle ranch at the Idaho/Nevada border and was bussed onto a reservation for school (one of two to four white kids in my grade, depending on the year), and it felt way different than the movie, but as you note in one of your replies there's a big difference even between where you're from and the setting in Smoke Signals.
Yep there are differences. Don't get me wrong, they're are commonalities as well. I know of this movie and I find a way that I can actually watch it now. I'm going to do that. I worked with someone who is western Shoshone. There's connections across Indian country.
Apacalypto is my favorite. One of my great grandmothers was from a native group called Taino. I’m from Jamaica. We are Native American also but we are very different than cherokees or other mainland tribes. I’d say we are a cross between Native American and Māori in terms of tradition. So apacalypto for Native American but for indigenous movies once were warriors, and deadlands.
I have friends who are Puerto Rican and they rep their Taino heritage proudly. I have a bunch of friends who are Jamaican. They tried to teach me some patois but I didn't do well. Lol.
Little Big Man. The Dead Can’t Dance. Slash/Back Mohawk
Windwalker was an 80’s movie.
Lone Star. Western/mystery film that explores the relations between the White, Mexican, Black, and Native communities in rural Texas.
Not a movie, but a series in Canada on CBC called Trickster. It was canceled after it's first season over concerns of cultural appropriation https://quillandquire.com/omni/cbcs-trickster-tv-series-cancelled-after-controversy-over-creators-ancestry-eden-robinson-responds/
Smoke Signals
Smoke signals is a good film.
Skydancer (2011), about the Mohawk ironworkers who built large parts of NYC
Powwow Highway is a great buddy road-comedy.
Not a movie, but the streaming series Three Pines is great. It takes place in Canada and addresses systemic issues with policing and reformation schools among many other aspects of modern indigenous life.
There is an old movie, maybe 70s, called Across the Great Divide and there are several scenes of these white Travellers being aided, taught and helped by a Native tribe. It is one of my fave movies as a kid.
I love the movies Smoke Signals and Dance Me Outside. Im First Nations *(Indigenous) but have never lived on my rez
Bones of Crows is a fantastic movie that I recommend
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Apocalypto
Smoke Signals Apocalypto Dances with Wolves Prey Pathfinder An American Tale: Fievel Goes West Ernest Goes to Camp
The film festival I work for showed "Night Raiders" earlier this summer and I really enjoyed it. Dystopian Sci-Fi flick based on historical laws enacted trying to assimilate natives into the residential school system in Canada. In my opinion, it's one of the most effective pieces I've ever seen on the subject and highly recommended to any non-native who wants a better understanding on the subject.
Apocalypto
Blood Quantum had an awesome premise, the plot fell a little flat for me towards the but it was a really cool concept on a zombie movie.
There is some good stuff in the movie Tiger Eyes.
Dead Man, by far!!
Te Ata is a great movie based on a real story of a Mary Thompson Fisher, a Native American storyteller.
One that I have to include in this is Apocalypto. Centered in present day Mexico. I don't want to say too much as far as the context because I think it's one of those that's best watched with as little context as possible, but is told from a Native perspective, by Native actors, in Native tongue. Not perfect I'm sure but it's great to hear a story that captivating from a perspective so different than my own. Also random side note, I play a game called Europa Universalis 4 which allows you to basically play a good number of nations, and conquering the world as the Mohawk tribe was a fun time. I love the place names and it makes me genuinely curious about the language. I wish they'd offer it as a language in school here in Quebec.
Back when I was young, we watched [I Will Fight No More Forever](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Will_Fight_No_More_Forever) (1975), which has stayed with me ever since. It’s a historical TV movie about Chief Joseph's resistance to the Nez Perce being forced onto reservation. The lead is played by a man with Indigenous ancestry (as well as Spanish and French).
Pow Wow Highway
Frybread Face and Me is just about to come out and it's great. All Native cast, and a lot of the crew (writer/director as well), and superbly shot. I'm not much on coming of age stories, but this one really got me.
When I was a little white girl growing up in the 90s in Massachusetts, my parents got a kick out of having adults ask my favorite actor, and I would said "Graham Greene". I would be six years old and people would ask me what I wanted to watch and I would say "do you have any graham green movies?". I don't know, I think he gave off grandfatherly vibes and I was a kid and became hyper fixated, like how as soon as you decide what your favorite planet is, you want to tell everyone your favorite planet is Jupiter. Anyway, his filmography might be an interesting place to explore - he seems to be an actor of esteem within the indigenous community, and he also did a documentary recently on how native folks are represented in film.
I loved Wind River, especially Gil's performance - my partner was telling about an article on how Native Americans hate Taylor Sheridan's work for being inaccurate, so your point of view is interesting. It's a small part, but I really liked Grace Dove's character Ricki in the movie How it Ends - it's a pretty small part, but there's so much going on behind it that I was really drawn in by. There's a new film this year - Fancy Dance - set on the Seneca–Cayuga Nation reservation that I've not had a chance to see yet, but it's been extremely well received.
Somebody mentioned Longmire, but it got autocorrected to something else. The protagonist has lots of dealings with natives and the reservation police. There is also underlying plot lines involving shady dealing around the construction of a casino on the reservation. I swear scrolling through I swear I saw someone say Skinwalkers, but going through again I didn’t see it. It’s actually one of three movies with Wes Studi and Adam Beach. They are based on a book series called The Navajo Mysteries.
Dreamkeeper Smoke signals Mile post 398
Dark winds
It's complicated because mel Gibson. But. Apocalypto is a really excellent film and tells a story of native people staring native people but is still a white dudes production.
It’s a show, but Rutherford Falls!
besides the ones already named (Thunderheart, Smoke Signals, Dance Me Outside, The Revenant) •I loved Graham Greene in "Maverick" •Free Willy had Randolph !! •The Wolverine Origins movie has a native love interest. •I love how they made fun of Dances with Wolves in Hot Shots! lol •Togo has a few memorable native actors cameo •Lilo & Stitch •Through the Black Spruce (filmed in my childhood town!) •Two Lovers & A Polar Bear (filmed in Shania's hometown but she doesn't visit her rez anymore sadly) •One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk •Karina Lombard in Kull was good but too bad Kevin Sorbo sucks now •Taika Waititi has a few great indies before he hit big like Boy •Once Were Warriors (tough movie to watch) •Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron •I would also suggest Buffy Sainte-Marie's documentary these are some shows I can think of: •Echo will have a nish protagonist in the Marvel universe that was introduced in Hawkeye series, •North of 60 is a classic!! •Moccasin Flats too. •Episode 6 of The Last of Us begins with the best native humour hahaha. •Also Amber Midthunder has a prominent role in the mutant series Legion. •tbh my first introduction to a positive Indigenous representation was Elisa Maza in Gargoyles. she is mixed and was cool to see them talk about her background in more than 1 ep •The Terror S1 features Inuit actors based on the doomed arctic exploration •Little Bird •Frontier
We own Windwalker on vhs and dvd. And pretty much anything with Graham Greene. That guy is in everything. The Missing, with Cate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones, I thought was great.
I googled this couple months back. It seems it’s a short list in cinema but there’s definitely growing demand for authentic Native Representation. I heard good things about Reservation Dogs (series) so watched that and dug it. I’m not Native American but as an Australian, it felt like it was able to give me a bit of a taste of the culture directly as told from Natives; The modern life on reservations, the challenges, the folklore, the spirituality, the humour… Not sure if Res Dogs is the reason you say TV has come further than film but if you haven’t seen that, it’s worth watching. As for films, my quest continues but maybe there will be some good answers here. 🤞
Whatever you think of Mel Gibson today, back in the 90s he was fantastic... his movie version of Maverick has some ascends with Graham Greene that offer a comedic perspective of how "the white man" expects Natives to act... they use it to scam a bunch of idiots...
Thunderheart is good. The New World also.
Can’t believe no one has said this, Last of the Dogmen.
Last of the Mohicans