Indian Comics Irregular #159

In April, "CSI: Miami" aired an episode about Indian gaming titled "Bloodline."
How bad was this show?

* A county supervisor was responsible for legislating an Indian casino.

* The Miami-Dade police burst into the Indian resort as if they'd never heard of
sovereign territory.

* One Native character applied to the Bureau of Indian Affairs for a
"certificate of authenticity."

* The three Native characters turned out to be killers or adulterers.

From "Numb3rs" to "Veronica Mars," television seems to love stories about
corruption in and around casinos. These episodes usually feature an Indian
casino, not one of the many non-Indian competitors. And someone with Indian
blood is usually guilty of something. It would be a shocker if a show depicted
a tribal gaming enterprise without crime or corruption and noted how the revenue
is going to build homes, schools, and hospitals.

See my full review of "Bloodline" at http://www.bluecorncomics.com/natv.htm .

On the Big Screen

In August, "Skinwalkers" (mis)appropriated the Navajo lore about shapeshifters
for an action flick about good vs. evil werewolves. The reviews say it's a
must-miss.

Meanwhile, several independent Native films--"Mile Post 398," "Four Sheets to
the Wind," "Turquoise Rose"--are making the rounds of film festivals and
reservations. Let's hope they get the exposure they deserve.

"D.C. Navajo," a short film that satirizes a Washington-based lobbyist, has
stirred some controversy. Filmmaker Shonie De La Rosa claims the Navajo
Nation's administration tried to censor his work, but the administration denies
it.

Another controversy is brewing over the hiring of Q'orianka Kilcher to play the
Hawaiian princess Kaiulani in an upcoming movie. Kilcher (Pocahontas in "The
New World") is part Native, but the part is Peruvian, not Hawaiian.
Writer/director Marc Forby says he scoured the islands for Hawaiian actresses
but couldn't find any with the right combination of age and experience.

Reviewing the Classics

This year I've seen and reviewed several old movies about Indians. Here's how I
rank them:

Win: "Drums Along the Mohawk" for presenting Indians as good Christians and
harmless drunks as well as bloodthirsty savages. Rob's rating: 8.0 of 10.

Place: "Cheyenne Autumn" for setting the Oklahoma scenes in Monument Valley and
using non-Natives (Ricardo Montalban, Sal Mineo) in key roles. Rob's rating:
7.5 of 10.

Show (tie): "The Unforgiven" for having countless Comanches sacrifice
themselves in a futile attempt to recover Audrey Hepburn, their lost sister.
Rob's rating: 7.0 of 10.

Show (tie): "The Light in the Forest" for its pouting white-boy-as-Indian and
its "Davy Crockett"-style storytelling. Rob's rating: 7.0 of 10.

For all the Native movie news and reviews, go to
http://www.bluecorncomics.com/namovies.htm .

My PEACE PARTY video

Work continues on the PEACE PARTY graphic novel. We're at the point of inking
and lettering the final chapter. I trust this long-awaited effort will see the
light of day in 2008.

To get the hype rolling, I've created a PEACE PARTY video and posted it on
YouTube. It tells the premise of the series in a fun-filled minute. You can
watch it on my website at http://www.bluecorncomics.com/contents.htm .

Rob Schmidt
Blue Corn Comics