SMOKE SIGNALS

SMOKE SIGNALS (1998)

RATING - PG-13 for some intense images, mainly a burning house in which you see the victims trying to escape from a distance and the frightening rescue of one of them.

THEMES - Forgiveness, overcoming family problems.

AWARDS - Quite a few awards & nominations including the Audience Award at Sundance.

REVIEWS - "Two Big Thumbs Up"-Siskel & Ebert (3/4), "One of the Best Films of the Year!"-Rolling Stone, 171 Amazon reviewers (4.5/5)

STORY - This is a film written and directed by Native Americans. It is not meant to be politically correct. It is an inside story. It's about a journey that two totally different Native American young men take to discover a father and a hero that, they discover, they really did not know. The first is Thomas, whose parents were killed in the tragic fire when he was a baby. He was spared in a dramatic rescue by Victor Joseph's father. Thomas is raised by his grandparents and turns out to be the town nerd-hands down. Victor Joseph grows up stoic and masculine and tough, what you might expect for someone whose father one day walked out on him and his mother and left them to fend for themselves. Word comes that his father has died and his ashes are waiting to be picked up. He has no money for the bus ticket but Thomas does and offers to pay his way if he can go along. They both have very different memories of the man. Which one is the truth? The bus ride and what they discover when they get there is the heart of this often funny, but equally often serious and reflective film. You will chuckle at the 'traffic report' for the Indian radio station. They break to a remote location where a 'reporter' is sitting on the roof of a car in the middle of nowhere and gives a play by play of each car that goes by. A fun film with a message for the family. Lu G. for Lu's Reviews. 10/13/2007.

LINKS - AMAZON, IMBD, ROGER EBERT