Native American History Movies & TV
This five-part series traces Native Americans' efforts to defend their lands and rights from the seventh century through the 1970s.
This film, based on a somewhat far-fetched premise—an interview with Jack Crabb, 121 years old and the only white survivor of the Little Big Horn—turns Western mythology upside down in recounting Crabb's life. At times hilarious, at others tragic, the film avoids both traditional stereotypes of the Native American: bloodthirsty warrior and noble savage.
Filmed in Monument Valley, directed by John Ford, and starring John Wayne, this is considered one of the great Westerns. Ethan Edwards sets out to rescue his niece, who was kidnapped by Native Americans. His search, however, turns into a quest to kill her when he learns that she's done the unthinkable: married a Native American man. Some critics argue that Ford's message was a complex commentary on racism. Even if true, it's doubtful that 1950s audiences caught the nuances.