Dance Me Outside was a disappointing film. It is often praised for its show of reservation life, for being composed of a Native American cast, and so forth. There are better films to watch if you want to see a slice of reservation life, such as Pow Wow Highway, Smoke Signals, or even Thunderheart.
Dance Me Outside's actors are hit and miss in their ability, the direction is mundane, the cinematography is common. Worst of all is the story, which in its attempt to fight against Native American stereotype creates its own racial stereotyping by having white men who are either morons or murderers. While such an attempt to stereotype whites could have been used as an attempt at irony and satire, rather it comes across as lazy filmmaking, as most racial stereotypes do.
In the end the film attempts to create a sense of unity among the Native American cast who are, throughout the film, being torn in different directions, whether through their life choices or from actions outside of their control. The climax of the film sees our supposed heroes choosing to commit an action that is utterly detestable (not mention a previous scheme to deceive an unwitting and innocent individual, conspired nearly by the whole cast) and the director expects the audience to praise it.
In its attempt to create a tension of moral dilemma Dance Me Outside fails where films such as the Jordanian movie Captain Abu Raed succeed. We understand why the temptation exists but we don't want our heroes to become the villains, Dance Me Outside seems to be unable recognize that.
Dance Me Outside's actors are hit and miss in their ability, the direction is mundane, the cinematography is common. Worst of all is the story, which in its attempt to fight against Native American stereotype creates its own racial stereotyping by having white men who are either morons or murderers. While such an attempt to stereotype whites could have been used as an attempt at irony and satire, rather it comes across as lazy filmmaking, as most racial stereotypes do.
In the end the film attempts to create a sense of unity among the Native American cast who are, throughout the film, being torn in different directions, whether through their life choices or from actions outside of their control. The climax of the film sees our supposed heroes choosing to commit an action that is utterly detestable (not mention a previous scheme to deceive an unwitting and innocent individual, conspired nearly by the whole cast) and the director expects the audience to praise it.
In its attempt to create a tension of moral dilemma Dance Me Outside fails where films such as the Jordanian movie Captain Abu Raed succeed. We understand why the temptation exists but we don't want our heroes to become the villains, Dance Me Outside seems to be unable recognize that.