Wind River

Dir: Taylor Sheridan

2017

****

Writer Taylor Sheridan completes his American Frontier trilogy (the first two films being Sicario and Hell or High Water) in style, opting to direct the final film himself. As well as being a fantastic thriller, Wind River also highlights a huge issue that many will be unaware of. Since 1978, after a landmark government ruling (Oliphant v. Suquamish), the Supreme Court stripped tribes of the right to arrest and prosecute non-natives who commit crimes on native land. If neither victim nor perpetrator are native, a county or state officer must make the arrest. If the perpetrator is non-native and the victim an enrolled member, only a federally-certified agent has that right. If the opposite is true, a tribal officer can make the arrest, but the case must still go to federal court. This quagmire creates a jurisdictional chokehold to the legal process on reservations such as Wind River. Many criminals go unpunished, knowing full well they can get away with it. Sheridan was informed by local tribal elders that there were twelve unsolved murders of young women on the reservation (of about 6,000 people) at the time of filming, so he added a ‘Based on real events’ title at the beginning of the film, as while this is a fictional story, events like it happen frequently in the area. Sheridan makes his stylish thriller with tact and respect, and highlights the truth of the currant state of things for the native people. Sheridan’s neo-Western trilogy is an astounding look at what the frontier has become and the legacy of something often sugar-coated in Hollywood. I have to say Sheridan’s unorthodox approach is refreshing. Much of what he writes does feel like the archetype classic western but he somehow manages to turn things around, make it contemporary and most importantly, believable. I love an old western but they are, by and large, complete fantasy. Sheridan’s stories have purpose and meaning, they are the thinking person’s thriller, devoid of predictability and chiche. The story is simple; a local Wildlife Service Tracker (played by Jeremy Renner) discovers the body of a young native girl in suspicious circumstances and is joined by FBI agent Banner (played by Elizabeth Olsen) who requests his assistance in a terrain she is not used to. Because of the nature of the girl’s death, the coroner can’t officially declare the crime as murder, putting agent Banner’s presence in limbo. Tracker Cory and Tribal Police Chief Ben Shoyo (Graham Greene) assist Banner in investigating aspects of the case outside of her jurisdiction, until another body is discovered. Banner soon discovers the nature of Cory’s keen assistance when he confesses that his daughter, who was best friends with the dead girl, was also found murdered, the crime remaining unsolved. As well as a thrilling murder mystery – that ends with a climactic western finish, there is also a human story of grief and overcoming adversity both from different cultural viewpoints. Jeremy Renner is great, one of the most overlooked actors working today and I liked Elizabeth Olsen’s character very much and am glad they didn’t make too much of her duck out of water situation. Jon Bernthal’s short role was and nice surprise and it is always a pleasure to see Graham Greene in a film, a king among supporting actors. It’s a chilling film, not just because the visuals with make you feel like you are there, but because it’s real and Sheridan reminds you every step of the way. A bleak masterpiece.