52 Films by Women Vol 7. 17. WAR PONY (Directors: Gina Gammell, Riley Keough)
Seven years after actress Riley Keough met some Reservation kids whilst working on American Honey , War Pony , her film about two young Lakota Ogala boys, co-directed by Gina Gammell and co-written by Bill Reddy and Franklin Sioux Bob, has reached the screen. On the one hand, it is commendable that the drama, set on the Pine Ridge Reservation, showcases a cast of young Native Americans. We’re a long way from Lou Diamond Phillips playing Officer Jim Chee of the Navajo police in Errol Morris’ film, The Dark Wind back in 1991 or Michael Apted’s 1992 film Thunderheart , in which Val Kilmer played a mixed heritage cop. (What is it with Native Americans and crime drama?) Films like Kevin Costner’s Dances With Wolves celebrated the dignity of Native Americans but ultimately put the white protagonist centre stage. Native American filmmakers such as Chris Eyre, Billy Luther and Sydney Freeland don’t get a huge amount of exposure for their work – Freeland is perhaps the most prolific, wi...