I was very taken with this little "made for TV" film, told almost like a short story and made better than it deserved to be by the commitment and chemistry of the leads Janine Turner and Michael Greyeyes (unfairly denied top billing).
The core characters are well-drawn in very little time; the story is engrossing, and the ending just the way its viewers come to wish for. To a great extent it makes up for the essential cheesiness of the show itself. ** Some spoilers from here on ** In 1868, both before and after her arranged marriage to a plain prairie homesteader, white Anna Brewster-Morgan (Turner) crosses paths with Tokalah (Greyeyes), a Sioux warrior, and eventually spends a year in captivity in his village, along with her friend Sarah. While Sarah struggles with Sioux life, Anna seems to relish it. But meanwhile Anna's husband Daniel and the US army have been searching for the captive women. Custer eventually tracks them and 'negotiates' for their release, at a price; but by this time Anna's initially clear-cut relationship with Tokalah, and the meaning of 'freedom', have changed for her.
The supporting cast add believability. Among them, Sarah (Jean Louisa Kelly), William Lightning (Cetah) and William Shockley (Custer) deserve mention. Rodney Grant is a bit wasted in his small non-speaking part, while Patrick Bergin's whispered utterings are just annoying in the second half. The film doesn't make cartoon judgements of its characters: no dyed-in-the-wool baddies, and no true-blue heroes. Everyone has complicated, human responses to the unfolding events. Anna's friend Sarah isn't a horrible white woman: she hates being a captive, but it's the life, not the people; and she shows empathy for Anna's predicament. Likewise, Daniel's fury: having waited so long for a wife, he's justifiably frustrated that she keeps slipping from his grasp.
Someone commented that this film is really all about white female wish-fulfilment and romanticising of Native men - yes, probably true. Despite this, I'd still rather see Native men visibly objectified than completely invisible, wiped off the cultural face of America altogether, as with so much of Native culture. How many mainstream films have you seen in the last twenty years in which Native characters feature so prominently? Shanghai Noon? Please. I wish, like other reviewers, that in 1997 they could have avoided putting Anna in heavy eyeliner and peach (!) lipstick; but there's more good than bad. The Sioux nation given its own voice (the scene in Custer's tent is particularly strong); Custer shown for the duplicitous self-glorifier he really was; a Native character as central love interest; Anna making a human choice guided by her desire. So until another "Thunderheart" or "Skins" comes along, I enjoy this as pure TV fantasy fiction and, yes, a bit of a guilty pleasure – what a pity all these fans can't get it on video or DVD!
The core characters are well-drawn in very little time; the story is engrossing, and the ending just the way its viewers come to wish for. To a great extent it makes up for the essential cheesiness of the show itself. ** Some spoilers from here on ** In 1868, both before and after her arranged marriage to a plain prairie homesteader, white Anna Brewster-Morgan (Turner) crosses paths with Tokalah (Greyeyes), a Sioux warrior, and eventually spends a year in captivity in his village, along with her friend Sarah. While Sarah struggles with Sioux life, Anna seems to relish it. But meanwhile Anna's husband Daniel and the US army have been searching for the captive women. Custer eventually tracks them and 'negotiates' for their release, at a price; but by this time Anna's initially clear-cut relationship with Tokalah, and the meaning of 'freedom', have changed for her.
The supporting cast add believability. Among them, Sarah (Jean Louisa Kelly), William Lightning (Cetah) and William Shockley (Custer) deserve mention. Rodney Grant is a bit wasted in his small non-speaking part, while Patrick Bergin's whispered utterings are just annoying in the second half. The film doesn't make cartoon judgements of its characters: no dyed-in-the-wool baddies, and no true-blue heroes. Everyone has complicated, human responses to the unfolding events. Anna's friend Sarah isn't a horrible white woman: she hates being a captive, but it's the life, not the people; and she shows empathy for Anna's predicament. Likewise, Daniel's fury: having waited so long for a wife, he's justifiably frustrated that she keeps slipping from his grasp.
Someone commented that this film is really all about white female wish-fulfilment and romanticising of Native men - yes, probably true. Despite this, I'd still rather see Native men visibly objectified than completely invisible, wiped off the cultural face of America altogether, as with so much of Native culture. How many mainstream films have you seen in the last twenty years in which Native characters feature so prominently? Shanghai Noon? Please. I wish, like other reviewers, that in 1997 they could have avoided putting Anna in heavy eyeliner and peach (!) lipstick; but there's more good than bad. The Sioux nation given its own voice (the scene in Custer's tent is particularly strong); Custer shown for the duplicitous self-glorifier he really was; a Native character as central love interest; Anna making a human choice guided by her desire. So until another "Thunderheart" or "Skins" comes along, I enjoy this as pure TV fantasy fiction and, yes, a bit of a guilty pleasure – what a pity all these fans can't get it on video or DVD!