WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1993 James Berardinelli
WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS
Rating (Linear 0 to 10): 6.2
Date Released: varies
Running Length: 2:21
Rated: NR (mature themes)
Narrator: Harry Rasky
Director: Harry Rasky
Producer: Harry Rasky
Written by: Harry Rasky
Released by the Canadian Broadcast Company
The history books lie. Most of us recognize that, but it isn't until we're exposed to a blistering film like WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS that we get a clear image of the extent of the lies. While admittedly this documentary doesn't make any declarations of objectivity, most of its claims ring more true than what we've been taught in our high school history classes.
WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS gives us the Native American perspective on the last five hundred years, beginning with the landing of Christopher Columbus (who, not surprisingly, is far from a hero in their opinion), and ending with the current treatment of the race in Canada (which probably isn't all that different from their treatment in the United States). Films like DANCES WITH WOLVES have attempted to present a different perspective of American Indians in fiction; WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS does the same thing in fact.
In order to better explain why Native Americans reacted as they did to the arrival of the White Man, producer/writer/director/narrator Harry Rasky spends time giving a condensed primer of American Indian mysticism. While some of this may be a little tough to accept for those not brought up with similar beliefs, this background makes it less difficult to understand why the work of early Christian missionaries was viewed as offensive.
The plunder of North America is brought brutally into focus, both then and now. For hundreds of years, greed and gold justified atrocities. Today, forests are torn down and land ripped up in the name of progress. WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS makes the telling point that despite man's apparent maturity as a species, there are some things that have changed very little.
The impression of most people is probably that the Native American is treated far better today than he was five-hundred (or even one-hundred) years ago. Certainly, it's true that there is no longer the wholesale slaughter that happened at Wounded Knee, but such killing has been replaced with a far more subtle and subversive method: assimilation. The danger is no longer the genocide of a people, but the eradication of a culture.
Many whites watching this movie are likely to have moments of extreme discomfort as they consider some of the points uncovered by WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS. Cynics will brush these concerns aside, but those with a more thoughtful viewpoint may find themselves disturbed.
The problem with the film is its presentation, not its content. While the straightforward documentary style can sustain short movies, it becomes cumbersome for longer efforts, and almost unbearable when a movie nears the two and one-half hour mark. Rasky doesn't try anything innovative, instead opting for simple interviews, landscape shots, and views of paintings and photographs. Without the originality of such efforts as ROGER AND ME, THE THIN BLUE LINE, and BROTHER'S KEEPER, this film threatens boredom before it ends. WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS is perhaps forty-five minutes too long.
Whether you should see this film or not depends in general on your opinion of documentaries, and specifically on your interest in the subject matter. WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS may be too didactic for the casual viewer. As a means of presenting ideas and redressing historical wrongs, WAR AGAINST THE INDIANS is an excellent effort. However, its methods of doing these things is somewhat lacking.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
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