Uma Mulher Exemplar

I absolutely loved Michael Greyeyes portrayal of one of the most iconic Native people in history. It was refreshing to see a Native person being seen as a 3 dimensional person with a sense of humor, intelligence, humility, etc. I am a native woman and was delighted to see our people seen as people. The story wasn't word for word accurate but the heart of the story was captured with grace & dignity. Thank you for making this film and respecting the person & people it represents.

Knowing nothing of the story upon which this film centres, I have since viewing same been led to learn more about the treatment of Sitting Bull and his people leading up to the human tragedy of the massacre at Wounded Knee. Obviously this beautifully shot movie with its understated wonderful music score and very strong performances of lead characters, has left a deep impression. Justifiably, some reviews here have found fault with the story's historical inaccuracy such as the age of the two major characters. It seems that dramatic licence is always a component of movies based on real events. But this should not detract from all too real emotions engendered, not only between the artist and her subject but by the embittered townsfolk who see Sitting Bull and his people as true savages. A film of beauty to be recommended.

There's an emotional sense to the film, the images, direction and dialogue have a honest but poetic tone. Cinematography was beautiful. And it's a tragic and moving subject. The destruction of a varied and rich culture, the nations and the resignation of these indigenous people. I felt the profound loss through the character of Catherine Weldon, the determined painter who was captured by the spirit of Sitting Bull while trying to capture him in paint.

The performances were noteworthy, I always like the projects chosen by Jessica Chastain and Sam Rockwell. And Michael Greyeyes has a lot of charisma portraying Sitting Bull especially with scenes with Jessica.

However, the story does lack in some pacing and factualness. The story was a very loose representation but it still makes it's point in the theme. Some have suggested this a white savior movie and it may well be. Yet, one doesn't take away a sense of pride in any of it. It's still a white story, just a sad and not particularly flattering one.

My wife and I found this movie streaming on Amazon Prime, with high-def picture and D-D surround sound. Quite nice presentation and beautiful cinematography. Filmed in New Mexico.

It was the 1880s and Native Americans had already been defeated and controlled by the American government. A New York painter, Jessica Chastain in the role of Catherine Weldon, becomes sympathetic to the plight of the Natives and decides to travel to North Dakota to meet Sitting Bull, paint his portrait, and assist him and his people resist.

The movie isn't completely fact-based, it doesn't even mention her son, and the events that led to Sitting Bull's murder in 1890 are highly dramatized in the script, but overall it is a good dramatic depiction of what the relationship consisted of.

Canadian actor Michael Greyeyes is very good as Sitting Bull, powerful chief relegated to potato farming. This is a good movie but it is a sad reminder of how poorly the Native Americans were treated back then.

WOMAN WALKS AHEAD

"Your society values people by how much you have; ours by how much we give away."

The film - 'based on' a true story - focuses on the developing friendship of artist Caroline Weldon with Teton Dakota Indian chief Sitting Bull. The facts of the story have been changed in a way to distort the truth: In 1889, feminist Indian Rights Activist Caroline Weldon from Brooklyn, New York, a member of the National Indian Defense Association, reached out to Sitting Bull as an advocate at a time when tension over several issues including division and sale of parts of the Great Sioux Reservation were high. She made the trip to North Dakota with her son. In the movie, Caroline Weldon came alone as a lonely widow searching for herself, on a mission to paint the portrait of Sitting Bull. Also at this time, a religious "Ghost Dance Movement" was spreading eastward to the Plains; it called on the Indians to dance and chant for the rising up of deceased relatives and return of the buffalo. When the movement reached Standing Rock, the dancers danced at Sitting Bull's camp. The nearby white settlers were alarmed, and Sitting Bull was shot during his arrest.

While I understand that this story focused on the relationship between Catherine and Sitting Bull, so much of their lives were passed over or skewed.

I came away feeling mixed about this movie: the New Mexico landscapes are striking; I enjoyed this look at the life and culture of the Plains Indians; the relationship bewteen Jessica Chastain, (Caroline Weldon), and Michael Greyeyes, (Sitting Bull) was moving, and their acting was strong, but the story was misleading. Still, I think it's a film worth seeing, but I don't understand why this story wasn't told historically as it's such an important piece of history. What did they think they were improving by doing a bait and switch on facts?