Reel Injun

I recently had the opportunity to view a documentary called “Reel Injun.”   The documentary is a Canadian film Directed by Neil Diamond which was honored with the Peabody Award.  An assortment of clips from familiar movies like “Dances with Wolves” and discussions with familiar faces like Clint Eastwood point out that Hollywood Cinema has created a persona of the Native American that is not true to history.

From childhood, there are certain pictures that are embossed in our minds; head bands fringed leather pants, full head dresses.  Indians were dirty savages and murderers.  

The subject is particularly interesting to me because of my novel and screenplay “Dream:  If not for Katie.”  My story is about a young girl who crosses America during the gold rush in the mid eighteen hundreds.  Circumstances put her in the middle of the conflict between the Native Americans and the whites.  She lives and loves both worlds.  “Reel Injun” has definitely influenced the direction of my screenplay and my future novels.

What I learned from this great documentary is that great care must be taken to understand the truth.  I am sure that most Americans realize, at this point in time, that Native Americans suffered tremendous hardships during this time period, as did the average American settler.   I am sure that some of us are still naive to what the Native Americans really endured.   My goal is not to put blame on either side, but write a true picture of a historical time period. 

Reel Injun