I am Human not Savage

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The independent film, Smoking Signal was filmed in 1998 was a production that was both directed and produced by Chris Eyre, an Native American from Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribe. The movie’s setting took place in an isolated Coeur D’alene Indian reservation in Northern Idaho. The film began of a house in  the reservation was caught on fire and a baby was flew outside the window from his parent so he can escape from death and was rescued by Arnold Joseph who was the first one at the scene and caught the thrown baby, soon he became to portray as a hero among his community. The baby boy named Thomas Build-the-Fire, from the fire was the only survivor, and became an orphan and lived with his grandmother after both of his parent died from the fire in which was accidentally caused by the hero, Arnold Joseph himself. Victor Joseph, the son of the hero, had a different interpretation of his father. He viewed his father as an alcoholic, and domestic abuser, and his relationship with his father was not great due to his father leaving him and Victor’s mother. After many years without the sight of his father, Victor’s mother received a phone call from Phoenix. New Mexico that her husband and the father of her son had died. Then the adventure of Victor and Thomas began for the search of Victor’s father ashes in Phoenix, New Mexico ; facing obstacles, judgement, self-identity and the truth of being a human instead..

Throughout the film, stereotypes and the injustice of Native American as a whole were illustrated within the characters of both Victor and Thomas and their surroundings. Thomas Builds-the-Fire resemble intelligence, wise and a oral traditional teller, also how the movie Dances with Wolves plays the role in Thomas idea of his identity as a Native. While, Victor represent athletic, strong like a warrior, and looked, also act  like a real “Indian”. This film, brings awareness of the stereotypes of Native Americans and how the characters experience and naturalize the stereotypes to their fiction life. In a scene, Victor complains that Thomas appearance and behavior was not a match of his blood as Coeur D’alene Indian. Forcing Thomas to change his clothing from a suit to a T-shirt logo “FryBread Power”, wear his hair down and to look mean like a warrior. Later, Thomas told Victor that their warrior appearance did not scared the two white males that have sat on their seats at the bus.

Throughout the movie, no actors and actress had no headbands, no feather crown on their heads or indigenous clothing. It focused on the historical representation on how the Native American were assimilated by the United States. In the movie, the characters like the Josephs expressed that people out of the reservation are not trustworthy and liars. In the beginning they emphasize  that they were celebrating “the white’s independence” and how John Wayne represent the Whites in old Western movies and sang that his teeth were fake. As the journey of Victor and Thomas ends, they did not learn any identity of their culture but who they really are a human being. Despite, that many people identify or looked at them as uncivilized and savages, the  journey that Victor found the truth of his father lead him to find himself as a human and the mistake the people make and how it affects not only themselves but others. Smoke Signal  address the injustice that Native American face to find their identity and that the reservation has led them to be isolate from the United States, making them feel alienated and foreign to the country that was once their too to feel wonder and be free.