While it doesn't hold together as a three-hour TV drama, Dreamkeeper should prove enthralling to anyone interested in Native American myths and legends. A variety of tribal folklore provides the episodic thrust of this typical Hallmark production, which relies too heavily on digital effects--and the plodding direction of Hallmark regular Steve Barron--in telling the story of a resentful Lakota teenager (Eddie Spears) who reluctantly agrees to drive his wise old grandfather (August Schellenberg) from their South Dakota "rez" to an All-Nations Powwow in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Along the way, the tradition-bound elder serves as tribal "dreamkeeper" for his initially resistant grandson, who gradually realizes that his grandfather's stories--visualized through effects-laden... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Steve Barron DVD Release Date: Released the 16 March 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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If you have any interest in Native American herbal remedies this takes you through the list of healing plants and explains what each plant is used for in ceremonies. There is also information on the basics of creation from a Native American perspective. I found it to be very beautiful and educational.
If you already are aware of some of the plants they are discussing then you can verify this information with your own knowledge or look up items like Juniper berries in a Natural Health book.
Interesting facts presented in this DVD:
Ants will eat the centers out of Juniper berries so you can use them as beads.
Cedar is burned to purify the emotions.
Burdock cleanses the skin and cleanses the lymphatic system.
As seen in this ambitious low-budget feature, The Business of Fancydancing can be very tricky indeed. Shot on digital video, the directorial debut of novelist-poet Sherman Alexie is both profound and problematic, embracing the emotional legacy of Alexie's Native American heritage (and the rich layers of his literary work) while displaying the stylistic pitfalls of a first-time effort. What emerges, most effectively, is the bicultural identity crisis faced by many Native Americans--in this case a celebrated gay poet named Seymour (played by Evan Adams, costar of the Alexie-scripted Smoke Signals) whose ambitions transcend the "Rez" (reservation) where he was raised. Though occasionally hobbled by amateur performances, this is a deeply moving drama about reconciling one's... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Evan Adams - Michelle St. John Director(s): Sherman Alexie DVD Release Date: Released the 08 July 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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A dark and moving tale of bitter helplessness turned to vigilante rage, Skins is the second feature film directed by Chris Eyre (Smoke Signals). As with the previous movie, Skins concerns two very different and determined protagonists who have grown up together: a cop, Rudy Yellow Lodge (Eric Schweig), on the Lakota reservation's police force, and his older brother Mogie (Graham Greene), an unrepentant drunk. Frustrated by Mogie's self-destruction and outraged by rampant alcoholism throughout the rez (with the disease's concomitant social violence and general hell-raising at an all-time high), Rudy resorts to off-duty, anonymous jungle justice--beating suspects and torching a Nebraska border-town liquor store--with tragic consequences. Eyre's unflinching eye for... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Eric Schweig - Graham Greene (II) Director(s): Chris Eyre DVD Release Date: Released the 25 March 2003 Usually ships in 24 hours
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