In today’s society Indians are not recognized or given enough respect towards them and their culture and lifestyle. However, this is nothing new, it has been going on ever since Christopher Columbus stepped foot in America. In the film industries, Native Americans have mostly always been depicted in negative ways. However, there have been movies that have tried to portray the reality of Native American lifestyle and culture in America. They still have some, but less, Native American stereotypes or myths than other movies .Two of those movies are Thunderheart (1992) directed by Michael Apted and Powwow Highway (1989) directed by James Wacks. Both if these films have many similarities between them. In Thunderheart, the main character is Ray
…show more content…
AIM was a civil rights activist organization who fought for Native American rights, most which were promised to them by the government. Thunderheart was inspired by events that actually happened on reservations. AIM is named ARM instead and the movie starts off with the activist leader of ARM being murdered. The Fbi charged Jimmy Looks Twice (ARMS activist) with the murder, however it was actually the Fbi who got him killed and framed Jimmy. ARM had the local goons as enemies who terrorized the reservations, and the Fbi did not like them either. ARM were fighting due to their treatment on reservations by the local goons and Fbis and just their unrecognized culture throughout the world. They gave the traditional living on the reservations hope and I am pretty sure that the Native American audience could have really related to this movie, unlike other films where Indians are portrayed in very negative ways and sometimes in fictional ways. Same as Powwow Highway, AIM was also involved but not mentioned directly like in Thunderheart. T.V. Reed states “There Buddy meets up with some of his old comrades from the Wounded Knee siege. When he arrives, his friends tell Buddy of the terror still being waged against AIM sympathizers on Pine Ridge; “a shooting every day” one of them remarks.”(Old Cowboys, New Indians pg82) This scene shows how AIM was significant to Native American people, who did actually die from the shootings with the Fbi, If it was not for the media covering the wounded knee area, the Fbi would have most likely killed them all if they could have gotten away with it, just like they did in the Wounded Knee Massacre. Both of these film directors were brave enough to include stuff like that and show the real Native culture in their movies. They both showed how reservations were struggling with contaminated water due
AIM was a civil rights activist organization who fought for Native American rights, most which were promised to them by the government. Thunderheart was inspired by events that actually happened on reservations. AIM is named ARM instead and the movie starts off with the activist leader of ARM being murdered. The Fbi charged Jimmy Looks Twice (ARMS activist) with the murder, however it was actually the Fbi who got him killed and framed Jimmy. ARM had the local goons as enemies who terrorized the reservations, and the Fbi did not like them either. ARM were fighting due to their treatment on reservations by the local goons and Fbis and just their unrecognized culture throughout the world. They gave the traditional living on the reservations hope and I am pretty sure that the Native American audience could have really related to this movie, unlike other films where Indians are portrayed in very negative ways and sometimes in fictional ways. Same as Powwow Highway, AIM was also involved but not mentioned directly like in Thunderheart. T.V. Reed states “There Buddy meets up with some of his old comrades from the Wounded Knee siege. When he arrives, his friends tell Buddy of the terror still being waged against AIM sympathizers on Pine Ridge; “a shooting every day” one of them remarks.”(Old Cowboys, New Indians pg82) This scene shows how AIM was significant to Native American people, who did actually die from the shootings with the Fbi, If it was not for the media covering the wounded knee area, the Fbi would have most likely killed them all if they could have gotten away with it, just like they did in the Wounded Knee Massacre. Both of these film directors were brave enough to include stuff like that and show the real Native culture in their movies. They both showed how reservations were struggling with contaminated water due