Thunderheart the movie
The movie Thunderheart opens with a indian ceremony. This was happening before the
sunrise. And we could see a native american running as fast as he can into the sunrise, with a
horseman chasing him. The horseman is bearing a gun, and just before the indian jumps into a
river, he got shot 4 times in his back.
This opening scene has scary music, and quickly lead me into the subject of the movie.
Civil war, that was what i thought. Since the indians had fights between tribes for a-
houndread years. I thought this movie had to include a bit of internal conflicts, between indian
tribes, even though i’ve just watched the intro.
The movie is about a newly qualified investigator, that is put on a case with a well known
investigator, named Frank Coutelle in FBI. Frank is a hard-working, rough person, that hates
to be asked questions, and maybe a bit stressed since he smokes cigarettes.
The person that later on the movie turn into be the main character, the other investigator, Roy
Levoi, has ancestry in a sioux indian family.
The main case in the movie, is to clean up in a civil war, between the sioux-indian tribe, and
the ARM-tribe. ARM is well known in order to be brutal, and exterminate the sioux-indian
tribe. The mission has to be cleared in 3 days.
Ray come to understand more and more that his father was a great sioux indian, and
become friends with the native americans in the south-dakota reservation. He spends alot of
time with the oldest, and learns about the living to indians.
Frank, the other FBI investigator, has come up with a possible murder to the indian we saw
in the intro, his name is looks-twice. Looks twice spend all his time in a wheelchair, because
of a accident in a jail, or thats what he said. Later on Frank maked out that he was lying, and
true. Looks twice actually can walk. But unfortunately he kills himself, just before they
managed to sentence him for the murder on the indian. A woman, that works like a local
roustabout in the reservation, allso dies in this fights. Her body was found in a gravel pit.
This gravel pit turns into be a test-excavation for a nuclear substance. And the person that
leads this test-excavation is nobody else than Frank Coutelle, the FBI agent!
He where investigated closer, and probably set in jail.
The message in the movie is rather diffuse, bit i think maybe it is something about
prejudiced against native americans, and people that blame innocent persons.
The american indians lived in peace in the 18th century, in the east, and the rest of the
country. The Chereokee, Greek, and Choctaw Native americans.
But in 1823 it was no longer allowed to own landfor indians, unless you got assimilated, or
became “white american citizen”.
The indians where forced to move into small reservates. Reservates is small groups of indians
in a closed area. The reservate had their own tribal police who patrole over the whole range.
Native americans has experienced two big massacres, the one with Little-big horn in 1880,
and with the wounded knee in 1890.
ARMs is a group of indians that is engaged in the traditional indian life, and very often looked
at like som sort of rebels. Prejudice is often pointed against ARM, and often get blamed for
anything.
The native american life is about to fade out. More and more get themself a job, and follow
the whites way of living. But the small part of indians that is left, tries to live like their grand
parents, and hold on to their roots. It is usual to see NA families that lives together in three or
maybe four generations, they live in what we could call extended families, and the oldest in
the families is often the wisest. –Listen to the oldest, you can hear them say!
All indians are envirementalists, they take what they need from the nature, and give
something back, thats the rule, allways. And another rule that they live for, is that earth cannot
be owned.
Indians are a peacful mankind, and should not be messed with. We have alot to learn from
them, but nobody ever listen to them, that’s my opinion.
Take care!
Steffen R Hamre