Reel Injun

The 2009 documentary by Neil Diamond, Catherine Bainbridge and Jeremiah Hayes examines how Indigenous peoples have been shown in American cinema. In the silent era they were sometimes filmed with respect; as the western settled into form they were reduced to a single type and the roles mostly given to actors of other origins. The film follows that shift through examples and argues that the noble savage figure that appeared in the sixties was another simplification. Neil Diamond, who is Cree, drives across America and the conversations happen inside that journey, with Adam Beach, Graham Greene and Clint Eastwood among those speaking. The last section is given to Indigenous directors making their own films. The tone is humorous while the criticism is clear. Who it's for: viewers curious about film history and questions of representation. Who it's not for: anyone looking for recommendations; this is an analysis.