Customer Reviews

Into the West

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

What a fantastic western epic this was! Just finished watching it on DVD, 12 hours long. Once you start watching it you get drawn into the well developed story about about 2 families, one plains Indian the other white settler, spanning several generations (aprox 80 years). Most unusual but realistic for a Hollywood production to have the indigenous people speak in their native tongue (subtitled English), mostly in Lakota. My wife unfortunately could not get into this movie and stopped watching it after a short while due to the sub-titles when the natives are speaking. I watch a lot of movies, my personal DVD collection is in excess of 2,000 titles, but I have never rated a show this high! I will not spoil it for you by describing the story, but this Steven Spielberg production is the most realistic western I have ever seen, the research that went into this production (see the "special features" on the DVD) used "natives" to play the Indian roles, the authenticity of the customs and sets, using native advisor's during production, etc... This movie should be used by history teachers as it is based chronologically on actual events spanning an 80 year time-line. Warning, it is a very sad story in some parts (brought tears - 50 year+ adult!) as you witness the destruction of the Plains Indian way of life including the government sponsored near-extinction of the buffalo herds. This DVD is a "must-have" for any serious DVD collector or anyone that loves heart-wrenching drama based on true events. This movie is receiving world wide acclaim and has one of the highest ratings on many sites. This movie should be nominated for many awards.

This is story of genocide, love, hope, ignorance, hatred, ambition, trust and mistrust, avarice, and arrogance. It's about humanity and all of our various shades of grey.

This is the story of what Euro-North Americans did to the original inhabitants and indeed the resources (e.g., buffalo) of Turtle Island (North America). If you rent the movie look carefully at the map displayed at the beginning of each series, you will see how we 'respected' and 'honoured' our own treaties and our laws by expropriating and expropriating more land to feed our avarice, until one day there was nothing but parcels of reservation land, which we now use to dump toxic waste.

I am very glad that this story is now available for all people to see, hear and feel. Even better is Native actors speaking in the traditional languages of the First Nations. Many people may be uncomfortable with a different pesentation of history, with characters of various shades of grey, where Métis conspire with the US army as scouts, where racism against African Americans and Indigenous Peoples runs untamed. Others may be angry at the portrayal of such historical figures as Livingston and Custer from the perspective of those who suffered at the hands of these euro-centric individuals.

The story of the Sioux (Lakota, Dakota, Nakoda) and Cheyenne is a story of resistance. It is the story of defiance, spearheaded by some of the greatest leaders in history (Sitting Bull, Roman Nose, and of course Crazy Horse). Sadly, the series captures only one portion of North American history, hopefully this series will provide the onus for individuals to learn more about Indigenous Peoples, past and present.

Perhaps "Into the West" is the beginning of the ancient prophecy "that the spirits of the vanquished will rise once again within the souls of the conquerors?" One can only hope.

Into the West is one of the best movies ive ever seen. It is Steven Speilberg at his best chronicling two family lines a western family and an native american family.

This dvd is the best Western I have ever watched. The acting was good, the story line was good. Over all it is a very addictive hard to set down movie. A definate 5 stars!