Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee 2007  TV, 135 min.
Genre: Drama / Western
Director: Yves Simoneau
Cast: Aidan Quinn, Adam Beach, August Schellenberg, J.K. Simmons, Eric Schweig, Wes Studi, Colm Feore, Gordon Tootoosis, Fred Dalton Thompson, Anna Paquin, Shaun Johnston, Wayne Charles Baker, Eddie Spears, Lee Tergesen, Tom Carey
This made-for-TV docudrama begins with the Sioux victory over General Custer and his troops at Little Big Horn in 1876 and follows through to the massacre of Native Americans at Wounded Knee almost 15 years later. Several intervening stories are told including that of Charles Eastman (Adam Beach) a Sioux doctor working to improve the Native Americans' quality of life, Lakota chief Sitting Bull (August Schellenberg) proudly holding on to his land, and Henry Dawes (Aidan Quinn) who helped develop the U.S. government policy on Indian affairs. Observing from different perspectives, it becomes apparent that achieving assimilation proves to be a difficult process.
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Comanche Moon 2008 TV, 284 min.
Genre: Drama / Western
Director: Simon Wincer
Cast: Val Kilmer, Steve Zahn, Karl Urban, Linda Cardellini, Rachel Griffiths, Elizabeth Banks, Wes Studi, Ryan Merriman, James Rebhorn, Adam Beach, Ray McKinnon, Keith Robinson, Josh Berry, Sal Lopez, Jonathan Joss
In this prequel to the "Lonesome Dove" saga, Texas Rangers Woodrow Call (Karl Urban), Gus McCrae (Steve Zahn), and Inish Scull (Val Kilmer) have been protecting settlers from Comanche Indians while pursuing horse thief Kicking Wolf (Jonathan Joss), Comanche war chief Buffalo Hump (Wes Studi), and Mexican bandit king Ahumado (Sal Lopez). Now, Call and McCrae are left on their own when Scull leaves them after his horse is stolen. More than a few problems await them on the personal as well as the professional front.
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Dances with Wolves 1990  PG-13, 183 min.
Genre: Western
Director: Kevin Costner
Cast: Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene, Rodney A. Grant, Floyd "Red Crow" Westerman, Charles Rocket, Maury Chaykin, Tantoo Cardinal, Robert Pastorelli, Wes Studi, Tony Pierce, Annie Costner, Kirk Baltz, Larry Joshua, Tom Everett
This Academy Award winner for Best Picture is the story of a Union soldier (Kevin Costner) who is sent to a frontier outpost where he befriends a tribe of Sioux Indians. When he grows to appreciate the Indians more than his own race and falls in love with a woman of the tribe, the Army calls him a renegade. Good fare. Costner won an Oscar for Best Director. In all, seven Academy Awards were received along with five nominations, which included Best Actor (Costner), Supporting Actor (Graham Greene), and Supporting Actress (Mary McDonnell).
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Deep Rising 1998  R, 106 min.
Genre: Sci-Fi
Director: Stephen Sommers
Cast: Treat Williams, Famke Janssen, Anthony Heald, Kevin J. O'Connor, Wes Studi, Derrick O'Connor, Jason Flemyng, Djimon Hounsou, Cliff Curtis, Clifton Powell
A gang of jewel thieves is in for a surprise when boarding a cruise ship in the South China Sea to discover that passengers and crew have been victims of a giant squid that devours its victims by sucking the fluid from their bodies. Yuck!
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Edge of America 2003 TV, 106 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Chris Eyre
Cast: James McDaniel, Irene Bedard, Tim Daly, Wes Studi, Delanna Studi, Misty Upham, Eddie Spears, Cody Lightning, Roger Willie, Christian Jensen, Geraldine Keams, Trini King
This film is based on the true story about Black high-school teacher Kenny Williams (James McDaniel) who accepts a job teaching English at Three Nations Reservation in Utah and then agrees to coach the girls' basketball team. He begins to fit into the tightly knit Native American community when his team rises in the standings to compete in the State Championships.
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Geronimo: An American Legend 1993 PG-13, 115 min.
Genre: Drama / Western
Director: Walter Hill
Cast: Wes Studi, Jason Patric, Gene Hackman, Robert Duvall, Matt Damon, Rodney A. Grant, Kevin Tighe, Stephen McHattie, Scott Wilson, Lee de Broux, Steve Reevis, Carlos Palomino, Victor Aaron, Stuart Proud Eagle Grant, John Finn
Finally, a film is made that attempts to show the Native American perspective of their U.S. government-ordered resettlement to reservations in Arizona during the 1800s. Geronimo (Wes Studi) and a small band of warriors escape from the reservation, and General George Crook (Gene Hackman) does try, unsuccessfully, to bring Geronimo back to the reservation. Finally, after five years of eluding capture, Lt. Britton Davis (Matt Damon) and Lt. Gatewood (Jason Patric) convince Geronimo to surrender. But, when all is said and done, all involved share a respect for Geronimo.
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Heat 1995 R, 165 min.
Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Michael Mann
Cast: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Val Kilmer, Jon Voight, Diane Venora, Ashley Judd, Amy Brenneman, Tom Sizemore, Jeremy Piven, Hank Azaria, Mykelti Williamson, Wes Studi, Dennis Haysbert, Natalie Portman, William Fichtner
Any film that Al Pacino and Robert De Niro both agree to perform in is guaranteed good movie fare. In this story, L.A. Police Detective Vincent Hanna (Pacino) becomes obsessed with the criminal activities of Neil McCauley (De Niro) and his gang of thieves. The climax is a riveting gunfight between cops and robbers across city streets in L.A.–do NOT miss this one.
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The Last of the Mohicans 1992  R, 112 min.
Genre: Adventure / Drama / Romance
Director: Michael Mann
Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Madeleine Stowe, Russell Means, Eric Schweig, Jodhi May, Steven Waddington, Wes Studi, Pete Postlethwaite, Colm Meaney, Maurice Roeves, Patrice Chereau, Edward Blatchford, Terry Kinney, Tracey Ellis, Dennis Banks
Beautiful cinematography backs this story of unlikely alliances between Native Americans and European nations during America's French and Indian War. The story centers around Hawkeye (Daniel Day-Lewis), the European-born adopted son of Mohican Indian scout Chingachgook (Russell Means). Hawkeye rescues the daughters–Cora (Madeleine Stowe) and Alice (Jodhi May)–of British Col. Edmund Munro (Maurice Roeves) who have newly arrived in the colonies. After a perilous journey in the midst of the war, the girls find safety under the watchful eye of Hawkeye.
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Miracle at Sage Creek 2005  PG, 81 min.
Genre: Family / Western
Director: James Intveld
Cast: David Carradine, Tim Abell, Irene Bedard, Wes Studi, Daniel Quinn, Sarah Aldrich, Darian Weiss, Masam Holden, Buck Taylor, Rance Howard, Wyatt Turner, Tanya Turner, Michael Parks, Martin Kove
Set in the Old West, this is the tale of two families, one led by Ike (David Carradine) who is at odds with neighbor John (Tim Abel) because John married a Sioux Indian. It was a Sioux who had killed Ike's wife years before, and the grudge against the Sioux continues. But, events require that the two families work together for survival in this family-oriented Western.
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Mystery Men 1999 PG-13, 115 min.
Genre: Action / Comedy
Director: Kinka Usher
Cast: Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, Janeane Garofalo, Greg Kinnear, Geoffrey Rush, William H. Macy, Kel Mitchell, Paul Reubens, Lena Olin, Wes Studi, Tom Waits, Claire Forlani, Eddie Izzard, Louise Lasser
This superhero movie, based on a comic strip, provides both action and comedy as Champion City's Captain Amazing (Greg Kinnear) faces the dilemma of losing sponsors because he has put all the bad guys in prison. He comes up with a publicity ploy: spring the evil Cassanova Frankenstein (Geoffrey Rush) from prison so he will have someone to capture. But that proves to be a bad move when the tables are turned, and Captain Amazing is held hostage. Enter a band of wannabe superheroes intent on saving the day.
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The New World 2005 PG-13, 150 min.
Genre: Drama / Adventure / Romance
Director: Terrence Malick
Cast: Colin Farrell, Q'Orianka Kilcher, Christopher Plummer, Christian Bale, Wes Studi, David Thewlis, August Schellenberg, Irene Bedard, Yorick van Wageningen, Ben Mendelsohn, Raoul Trujillo, Brian F. O'Byrne, Michael Greyeyes, Kalani Queypo, Noah Taylor
Captain John Smith (Colin Farrell) explores the New World and forms the community of Jamestown in 1607, but there is an uneasy truce between the settlers and the Native Americans already in the area, and Smith is taken captive. Lucky for him, Chief Powhaten's (August Schellenberg) daughter, Pocohantas (Q'orianka Kilcher), interferes and saves his life. The story continues from there and centers on the loves and tribulations of Pocohantas' life.
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Powwow Highway 1989 R, 90 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Jonathan Wacks
Cast: A Martinez, Gary Farmer, Joannelle Nadine Romero, Amanda Wyss, Sam Vlahos, Wayne Waterman, Margot Kane, Geoffrey Rivas, Wes Studi, Graham Greene, John Trudell, Tony Frank
Cheyenne Buddy Red Bow (A Martinez) and Philbert (Gary Farmer) take off from their Montana reservation in Philbert's beat-up car on their way to Santa Fe to bail Buddy's sister out of jail. This is not only a road film but also a good treatise on the plight of today's Native Americans.
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Seraphim Falls 2006 R, 115 min.
Genre: Drama / Western / Action / Thriller
Director: David Von Ancken
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Liam Neeson, Angie Harmon, Anjelica Huston, Michael Wincott, Ed Lauter, John Robinson, Robert Baker, Jimmi Simpson, Nate Mooney, James Jordan, Kevin J. O'Connor, Tom Noonan, Xander Berkeley, Wes Studi
This story is set in 1868, the post-Civil War era, and begins with Pacific Northwest trapper Gideon (Pierce Brosnan) getting wounded by rifle fire. The bullet came from the gun of a posse member led by former Confederate Army Colonel Carver (Liam Neeson) who is out for revenge by punishing Union Army Captain Gideon for crimes committed during the Civil War. This time, Gideon escapes by tumbling down a mountain, falling into a stream, and leaping over a waterfall into freezing water. He climbs out, sets a camp fire, and digs out the bullet. But that's just the beginning of this story–most of which involves Gideon running for his life with Carver and the posse in hot pursuit.
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Street Fighter 1994 PG-13, 95 min.
Genre: Action / Sci-Fi / Comedy
Director: Steven E. DeSouza
Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Raul Julia, Ming-Na, Damian Chapa, Kylie Minogue, Simon Callow, Roshan Seth, Wes Studi, Byron Mann, Grand L. Bush, Peter Navy Tuiasosopo, Jay Tavare, Andrew Bryniarski, Gregg Rainwater, Miguel A. Nunez Jr.
This comic book, action flick is formed around a video game, "Street Fighter," and kids will recognize most of the set and action from the game. A colonel (Jean-Claude Van Damme) for a U.N. type organization drops into Southeast Asia to bring feuding warlords to their knees. This was Raul Julia's last film before his untimely death.
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Undisputed 2002 96 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Walter Hill
Cast: Wesley Snipes, Ving Rhames, Peter Falk, Michael Rooker, Jon Seda, Wes Studi, Fisher Stevens, Dayton Callie, Amy Aquino, Johnny Williams, Joe D'Angerio
Top-ranked heavyweight boxer James "Iceman" Chambers (Ving Rhames) begins serving a prison sentence when he learns he is infringing on the world of another inmate, prison boxing champ Monroe Hutchen (Wesley Snipes). It isn't long before a fight is arranged by fellow convict Emmanuel "Mendy" Ripstein (Peter Falk).
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Wind River 1998 PG-13, 95 min.
Genre: Drama
Director: Tom Shell
Cast: Blake Heron, Karen Allen, Wes Studi, Patricia Van Ingen, A Martinez, Russell Means, Joe Wandell
Based on a true story of Pony Express rider Nick Wilson (Blake Heron), this is an effective account of Nick's adventures from the time he was a 13-year-old boy in mid-1800s' Utah, joined the Shoshone Indian tribe, and trained to be a warrior.
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| 1. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (2007)
2. Comanche Moon (2008)
3. Dances with Wolves (1990)
4. Deep Rising (1998)
5. Edge of America (2003)
6. Geronimo: An American Legend (1993)
7. Heat (1995)
8. The Last of the Mohicans (1992)
9. Miracle at Sage Creek (2005)
10. Mystery Men (1999)
11. The New World (2005)
12. Powwow Highway (1989)
13. Seraphim Falls (2006)
14. Street Fighter (1994)
15. Undisputed (2002)
16. Wind River (1998)
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