Smoke Signal is an independent Canadian-American film released in 1998, directed and co-produced by Chris Eyre and by screenplay by Sherman Alexie, based on the short story "This Is What It Means To Say Phoenix, Arizona "from his book The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven (1993). The film won several awards and awards, and was well received at various film festivals.
Video Smoke Signals (film)
Plot
Victor Joseph (Adam Beach) and Thomas Builds-the-Fire (Evan Adams) live in Coeur D'Alene's Indian Reservation in Plummer, Idaho. Thomas is an eccentric storyteller and Victor is an angry young man who loves to play basketball.
Victor and Thomas were brought together through Victor's father, Arnold (Gary Farmer). Arnold rescued Thomas as a baby from a house fire that killed his parents. Because of this, Thomas considered him a hero. On the other hand, Victor, who bore Arnold's alcoholism, domestic violence, and eventually abandoned the child, considers his father with a deep love and a painful grudge. Thomas and Victor grew together as neighbors and acquaintances, clashing with each other and simultaneously forming a close alliance, albeit uncomfortable.
When Arnold died in Phoenix, Arizona, where he lived after leaving Victor and his mother Arlene (Tantoo Cardinal), Victor and Thomas went on an adventure to take the ashes. The journey is a means for Victor and Thomas to explore their identity. None of them lose sight of their identity as "India," but their perspectives are different. Victor is more stoic and Thomas is more traditional (and romantic to the point of watching feature films Dances with Wolves many times). Their dichotomy is depicted throughout the film; it caused Victor to feel annoyed with Thomas, and Thomas was fascinated with Victor.
Once they reached Phoenix, Victor had to deal with his conflicting feelings about his father, as well as his own identity. She had to grapple with a new story about Thomas's parents' death, as told by her father's friend, Suzy Song (Irene Bedard). He says that the drunk Arnold lights the fireworks, inadvertently lighting the fire that caused Thomas his parents. The land travel by the young people leads to Thomas reconciling with the memory of his adoptive father, Arnold, as he better understands his path to alcoholism and related abuses and neglect. Victor also gained a better understanding of Thomas and his respect for Arnold.
Maps Smoke Signals (film)
Production
The film is unique as a genuine American production: producer, director, screenwriter (Alexie), actor and technician. Alexie does this for the end, correctly representing the native American culture that is often represented through white ideals and misinterpretations of real life.
Critical reception
Reviews
The film was well received by mainstream critics. Rotten Tomatoes gave the Smoke Signal 83% approval ratings, based on 29 reviews with an average rating of 7.3/10. At Metacritic, the film had a weighted average score of 76 out of 100, based on 17 criticism, which shows "favorable overview".
Peter Stack of the San Francisco Chronicle gave this movie a warm review, calling it, "understated, funny and full of feeling [...] Acting kind, well written, with a flexible and beautiful image." Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times described the Smoke Signal as a warm friendship and reconciliation film, and each time refers to historical injustices or contemporary issues in Native American culture, , glancing at humor. Smoke Signals is indeed miserable, but above all that is pretty funny. "Marc Savlov from The Austin Chronicle calls the film" sharp and funny "and" lights up weird nuances and sour observations, "said further," the cast is very good in their role, and the long-standing use of Eyre, shooting shot reinforces the tune of the story rhyme.Simple and elegant, Smoke Signal is the debut delicious and intoxicating that lasts long after the story is told. "
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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