Indians or Indigenous Americans (#atozchallenge 2013)

Cover of A Man Called Horse

 The films that I'll be listing in my April postings will not necessarily be films that I'd call my favorite films, but they will be favorites in the genres I'll be naming.   The A to Z genres are very specific micro genres as opposed to the broader genres like action, romance, or comedy.

         When I was a kid cowboys and Indians was a popular movie genre.  Then in the late 60's as the greater awareness of social issues came into play, the genre of Indian movies became more in vogue.  Of course I'm not talking Bollywood here, but using the misnomer of "Indians" as the indigenous peoples of the Americas.   

          I became very sympathetic with the cause of the peoples of the "New World" displaced by the European invaders and avidly read books and saw every movie I could about this topic.  I'm still a fan of these films though now have taken a bit more moderate position in the settlement of the Americas.  But I'll save those issues for a future controversy debate--yes, related topics are already on my controversy list.

Here are a few favorite movies that focus on Indian/Indigenous American stories:

The Searchers (1956)-- Young girl kidnapped and defiled by evil Injuns.  The Indians are still the bad guys in this great John Wayne film, but questions about mistreatment of the Indigenous Americans are also raised. The focus is on the white guys' search, but the story is rooted in the Native Americans.

A Man Called Horse (1970) -- Not long after "someone left the cake out in the rain", Richard Harris starred in one of my favorites of this genre which also spawned two sequels.  In this film an English aristocrat gets captured by Indians.  Eventually as he begins to learn more about their lifestyle he gains their respect and becomes one of them.  To me and my friends back then this guy was one of our heroes.  

Soldier Blue (1970) -- This very upsetting film which has parallels to some of the U.S. atrocities of the Viet Nam war is based on the Sand Creek Massacre of Cheyenne and Arapahoe Indians by U.S. Army cavalry soldiers in 1864.   The massacre scenes are brutal and sad and one can't help but sympathize with the Indigenous Americans.   A couple of friends and I went to see this at the Parkway Drive-in Theater in Maryville, Tennessee and we angry for days after seeing it.  We plotted among ourselves of what we could do against the government to get revenge for Sand Creek, protest Viet Nam, and show our general distaste for the United States government.  Then we'd pass around a joint and get mellow. 

Dances With Wolves (1990)-- This Academy Award winner stars Kevin Costner as another white who turns into an Indian.   It's a fine movie.  It's also quite long.

Apocalypto  (2006) --  This is my absolute favorite of the bunch.  This epic journey film directed by Mel Gibson depicts Mayan life prior to the arrival of the Europeans.   It's realistically done in the Mayan language with subtitles.  There is exciting action and an impressive recreation of a Mayan city and the culture.  I love this film!

        There are a lot of other choices in this genre--what can you add to this list?   What are your favorites?   Whose side are you on--cowboys or Indians?

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• America's Imperial Nostalgia
• David Yeagley: An American Indian perspective on political correctness
• A Native of the Heart?
• ICTJ: International Experts Gathered in New York to Explore Access to Justice for Indigenous Peoples

Helicopter Movies (#atozchallenge)

Cover of Blue Thunder (Special Edition)

 The films that I'll be listing in my April postings will not necessarily be films that I'd call my favorite films, but they will be favorites in the genres I'll be naming.   The A to Z genres are very specific micro genres as opposed to the broader genres like action, romance, or comedy.

          For 'F' I used flying films as my topic.  That list only listed films that featured airplanes.  What I missed were films that include flying in balloons, jet-pack suits, spacecraft, and helicopters.   The latter is my topic for 'H'.
           
          Many post World War Two films feature helicopter scenes.  This is a great motif for action drama allowing for air chases, rescues, and other dramatic aerial scenes.  There is a certain fascination with a helicopter's abilities to take off vertically, hover in the air, and maneuver through urban settings.  Those spinning rotors are pretty mesmerizing as well.

          The following films either feature notable helicopter scenes or helicopters as a major part of the plot:


Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991) --The helicopter chasing the vehicle is pretty cool though a fairly short sequence.  An outstanding film in a very good series.

Black Hawk Down (2001)-- Just about any modern war movie will feature helicopters since they have become such an integral part of warfare.   A film named after a helicopter and about a helicopter crew is a no-brainer for this list.

Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)  -- Okay, so officially the aircraft in the film is a gyroplane, but it looks and functions like a small helicopter.  Close enough for this list.  This is among my favorite films

Blue Thunder (1983) --  This is probably the ultimate helicopter film.   Roy Scheider stars as a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter pilot who steals a new model copter--the Blue Thunder--that he discovers will be illegally used for crowd control.  There are some great stunts using real copters and models.  Fantastic flying action over Los Angeles.

Apocalypse Now (1979) -- The most iconic helicopter movie scene of all time has to be the helicopter raid scene in this film where Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" is blared from loudspeakers on the aircraft as they attack the Vietnamese village.  One of my top five favorite films.

          Can you add any great helicopter films to this list?   Are there any helicopter films from the 50's or 60's that you can think of?    What is the best helicopter movie stunt that you've seen?

In Blogging News:

Be sure to check out the Monday April 8th post at The Writing Nut.  Nutschell did a great job of recapping the blogging workshop that I conducted in Los Angeles recently.

Hope you will also visit the new bloggers who were at the workshop and decided to join in the A to Z Challenge at the last minute.  Stop in, leave a comment, and follow their blogs.  They'd love to have your support.

Bloggers from CBW-LA participating in the A to Z Challenge:

Kat at A Writer's Musings

Chontali at Profiling Great Americans

Michael at Nouveau Scarecrow

Christina at Raising Twins

Lucy at Kids Math Teacher
Alana at Writercize

Also with blogs but not doing A to Z:

Samantha at Samantha Combs Writes
Jennifer at J.L. Carson, Storyteller

Related articles

• Flying Films
• Think Beyond Your Blog's Genre
• My #atozchallenge Theme for April: Film Genres A to Z
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Gangster Movies

The "grapefruit scene". Cagney shoves half of a grapefruit into his girlfriend's face in The Public Enemy. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 The films that I'll be listing in my April postings will not necessarily be films that I'd call my favorite films, but they will be favorites in the genres I'll be naming.   The A to Z genres are very specific micro genres as opposed to the broader genres like action, romance, or comedy.

        Okay, so we'll start by clarifying some glaring omissions in this category before I go into a few of my favorites in this broad genre.  First of all, though I've seen many of the great gangster films of the 1950's and the preceding years, I don't remember them so well.  I'm leaving out gangster film greats like James Cagney, Edward G. Robinson, and Humphrey Bogart.  Travesty I know, but sorry I just can't recall the films that well.

      Some biggies missing here will be the Godfather series.  Can you believe it?  I've never seen a one.  I keep meaning to, but just haven't yet.   Another that many of you may disagree with is Al Pacino's Scarface (1983).  I hated that film--too much unnecessary profanity and violence and nothing redeeming or fulfilling about it.  I may be in the minority on this one, but we'll see what goes in the comments.

        So let's see where we are in agreement on this favorites list:

Goodfellas (1990) -- Perhaps the most traditional old school in the cast of characters, but less so in story.  These are the real life type of gangsters who might live in your neighborhood.   Just gangsters doing what they do.

The Departed (2006) -- The film that asks "Who can you trust?"   If you're a gangster it's always a good idea to watch your back.   An Oscar winning film that is critically regarded and for good reason.

A History of Violence (2005) -- If you've been a gangster, the past will catch up with you eventually.  The mob is relentless and will stop at nothing to get revenge.   In this award-winning film a family man's violent past is uncovered.

No Country For Old Men (2007) --  Gangsters ain't what they used to be and old school lawmen like  Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) lament the olden days when there was a sort of code among the bad guys.  In the modern age of Mexican drug cartels and the underworld that exists in the United States, there is no discretion when it comes to killing.  The randomness of who dies may be no more than the whim of a coin toss.  This dark film explores the enigma of the new era gangsters and the evil of that culture.  We may be helpless if we can't figure out who our enemies really are.  This is a great film by the Coen Brothers and I don't think much more than that need be said.

The Usual Suspects (1995) -- "Who is Keyser Soze?"  Watch this film and see if you can figure out the answer.   This is another great film well worth the time of anyone who likes gangster movies that dig deeper into the roots of why gangsters exist.

Bugsy Malone (1976) --  If you've managed to watch all of the previously mentioned films, you may need to lighten things up a bit with this film.   Bugsy Malone is a gangster inspired musical featuring the talents of an all children cast playing adult roles.  It's pure fun where tommy guns are replaced by splurge guns, weapons that fire custard cream instead of bullets, and the cars are nifty pedal-powered jobs.  No one gets killed and the worst that ever happens to anyone is a pie in the face.  The film features Scott Baio (remember him from the TV show "Happy Days") and a 13 year-old Jodie Foster.  This G-rated film is fun for the entire family and is perhaps my overall favorite of the bunch I've listed here.  It is a film with a very positive and uplifting message.

         Which of these films have you seen?  What other gangster films would you recommend?    Do you think the image of America is best conveyed by gangster films, westerns, or some other film genre?

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