The Broken Chain

The story/history within itself is a drama.It clearly shows the changes Theyendenagea undergoes by turning from a good-hearted,trusting warrior into a clear-visioned chief, who bravely accepts responsibility for his actions.

By carefully watching this film,a lesson or two can be learned.

It is one of the best films ever made, realistic and sensitive.

A fact that is frequently overlooked in the US, although it is flat out mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, is that one of the motivations for the American Revolution was precisely the British Crown's refusal to sanction the American colonists' expansion into the West at the expense of Indian rights. It is not surprising then that many native Indians sided with the British in the revolutionary war as the United States, as they correctly feared, proved to be a far more hostile power to them than the Crown.

It is also important to remember that the American Revolution was actually a tale of not one, but actually two new countries: on one hand, the United States, which went its own way, and, on the other hand, Canada, which remained loyal to the Crown, even though Canada as a separate national polity within the British Empire would not emerge until much later in the 19th century.

I thought this film to be a good one since I believed it to be historically accurate. I think Eric Schweig did a good job in portraying Joseph Brant. After watching this film, it reminds me a little bit about the film "Divided Loyalties" (a Canadian version of this film) in which John Langedick played the part of Joseph Brant too. In that particular film, it showed what Joseph did from when his early days. In this one, the focus is centered on what Joseph and his brother did during the Revolutionary War. Of course there were some differences between "The Broken Chain" and "Divided Loyalties". Broken Chain was American made film while Divided Loyalties was Canadian (I believe).

But anyway................... this is why I gave this film a 7 out of 10.

"The Broken Chain" is a very different movie from others you might expect about the plight of First Peoples. It offers, not only a unique perspective on the American Revolutionary War, but the perspective of women in Iroquois society. They play a far greater role in their people's way of life than normally believed. This is not often depicted in movies or television.

When watching this film, one gets the feeling that this movie's objective is to teach rather than entertain. This is not to downplay the theatre: the acting, direction, and writing are top-notch. But as my friends point out, the movie drags on as it recounts the history of Joseph Brandt (Eric Schweig) and Lohaheo (J.C. White Shirt) from teenagers to their pivotal moments in North American history and the eventual fall of the once mighty Iroquois Confederacy. These two are "brothers", well supported by Gesina (the talented Buffy Sainte-Marie) and Seth (Wes Studi), who provide the necessary splash of reality for the two leads, as well as Catherine (Elaine Bilstad) and Sir William Johnson (Pierce Brosnan), who are essentially their foils.

What I'm fond of most about this movie are the women's interaction with each of the characters. Gesina and Catherine are not easily defined. In most movies that concern the First Peoples of the Americas, the women are often shadows of their community. This is not the case in "The Broken Chain" for the scenes that include Sainte-Marie and Bilstad, as well as Grace C Renn and Kim Snyder, offer fresh insight into the life of their community and even become the brighter spots of the movie itself. This in turn allow these actresses to show audiences how talented they truly are.

For teachers who wish to include video supplementary material for their classes, this movie should be your first pick. However be warned that some of your students may fall asleep. Despite what the publicity for this movie may suggest, Brosnan does not play an action hero.

This is a tragedy but a very important one, showing a chapter of American history that almost no one knows anything about. In the French-British war about America most Indians sided with the French, with one important exception: the six nations of the Iroquois society, that were bound together in peace by an ancient pledge, and not even the great Pontiac alliance could drag them into war. The film concentrates on the story of two Iroquois, Joseph Brandt who gets an English education and becomes a British officer in the independence war, and Lohaheo, who tries to stay neutral and maintain peace at any cost and ultimately gets killed for it. Joseph Brandt (Eric Schweig) finally saved himself and the remnants of his tribe by moving to Canada, founding Ontario, and lived to be almost 65. Buffy St. Marie plays an important part as one of the leading Indian ladies. Pierce Brosnan makes a great performance as Sir William Johnson, who desperately tries to keep both the Indians at peace and the British at bay, he married an Indian and had half Indian children, but ultimately he could not fight the inevitable tragedy. The music is also excellent. It is only a television film, but it will always remain vitally important.