Wild Indian

1/30/2021

If you enjoy reading my Spoiler-Free reviews, please follow my blog @ https://www.msbreviews.com Being this an Indigenous film and a feature directorial debut for Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr., I really didn’t know what to expect. Maybe that’s why I enjoyed it more than I anticipated. Wild Indian takes a tragic, dark moment in an early phase of two characters’ lives and follows an unconventional path to demonstrate how surprising someone’s future can be, especially considering the younger-self personality. Everyone changes parts of themselves throughout life, even more during childhood and teenage years. Despite the overall slow pacing - slower than what I believe to be necessary - an efficient “twist” instantly raises the level of interest in the main narrative, which takes a while to

3/9/2021

The bleak drama “Wild Indian” is an emotionally complex story of the vicious cycle of trauma and violence, especially as it relates to the Native American community. Writer / director Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr.‘s film features a predominantly Indigenous cast, which gives the film a very specific (yet also universal) feel. It’s a story rich with cultural heritage, and one that doesn’t shy away from weighty themes of enduring hardships and breaking free from inter-generational trauma. Makwa (Phoenix Wilson) and his best friend Teddo (Julian Gopal) are normal school aged boys. They love to hang out and play in the woods, and they’re inseparable. Makwa has been showing up to class covered in bruises, which are starting to get worse. He says he got them from falling down, but everyone knows h

4/21/2022

_**The good, the bad and the ugly of escaping the Res**_ Abused Makwa grows up on a troubled Reservation in Wisconsin with his cousin Teddo in the 80s. Over three decades later they meet again and the contrast is glaring. Michael Greyeyes and Chaske Spencer head the cast while Jesse Eisenberg and Kate Bosworth have peripheral roles. "Wild Indian" (2021) is a slow burn drama about modern AmerIndians and the challenges of life on a Reservation, plus the ins & outs of life beyond. It has the melancholy, mundane tone of "Leo" (2002), "The Woodsman" (2004) and "First Snow" (2006). Although it may not be on the level of “Woodsman,” it’s arguably superior to the other two. Writer/director Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr. grew up on Reservations in Wisconsin & Minnesota so the movie obviously