Tales of the Natchez Trace

What's impressed me most of the 12 Westerns in 12 Months project is the quality of the camerawork and cinematography, and Tales of the Natchez Trace is no exception. It is clear that the director, Travis Mills, and his crew put a lot of thought, time and effort into getting the best shots possible. Like in Wilderness Road, some of the shots look just like a painting. One shot of a keelboat on the river is particularly gorgeous. Issues that plague and distract viewers in most low budget filmmaking endeavors, like everything looking too bright and washed out, are missing from Tales.

Tales tells seven stories that took place along the famous Natchez Trace, a road that is important to American history and western settlement as the Oregon Trail. The stories involve both the famous, Mike Fink and Merriweather Lewis, the infamous, John Morel and the Harpes, and both famous and infamous in the case of Andrew Jackson. Mills shows great creativity to portraying this overlook history. His choice to show a comic story after a tragedy is great writing. I also like composer Alex Schoepel including holiday music elements during the fight between Annie Christmas and Mike Fink.

My only complaint is that it is too dang short. I didn't want it to end. John Murrell deserves his own movie. So, if you want to see more movies about the Wild East east of the Mississippi, take the time to watch Tales of the Natchez Trace and send a message to the film industry that we want see more untold history told on the big screen.