This film is very good but it deviates from the facts to such an extent it seems like an entirely different film. Why create a different story. Weldon was divorced, not a widow. Her $ came from her mother, not her father. She was part of the National Indian Defense Association, not an innocent painter. She had a son, who went with her. etc. etc. The real story is just as compelling, maybe even more so.
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drjgardner3 December 2020
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Polar-Night1 July 2018Can Jessica Chastain do any wrong? Every project she chooses has beauty and sophistication.
I'm saddened by the ignorant and imprudent reviews which I read this week. Especially someone calling it "listless". The ongoing hype on action movies and the many dialogues in movies have seemingly numbed the senses of the average moviegoers as they cannot anymore feel without touch, hear without words and see without movement.. The movie contains so many touching moments, relatable characters, an emotional bond between the leads, a sensitive approach to a dark material and a stunning cinematography which will make me watch the movie again on the big screen.
Since the topic on Native American rights, Standing Rock and pipelines is as relevant as ever, this movie is of great importance and should not be treated as a forgettable indie film - Shame on the so-called critics.
The Native Americans are treated and depicted respectfully by giving them character traits, letting them speak in their own language and showing their bond with nature and their understanding of life. In all movies about Native Americans which I watched, there has always been strong violence, humiliation and vulgarism. Noteworthily is the final shot of a white horse dancing upon hearing a gun shot accompanied by Jessica Chastain's painting-like suffering on the ground - with her loose and long hair which emphasises her long-awaited freedom ! So happy to finally watch a female Western about Native Americans, which is as beautiful as a Romantic painting and as touching as an elegy. -
WOMAN WALKS AHEAD
"Your society values people by how much you have; ours by how much we give away."
The film - 'based on' a true story - focuses on the developing friendship of artist Caroline Weldon with Teton Dakota Indian chief Sitting Bull. The facts of the story have been changed in a way to distort the truth: In 1889, feminist Indian Rights Activist Caroline Weldon from Brooklyn, New York, a member of the National Indian Defense Association, reached out to Sitting Bull as an advocate at a time when tension over several issues including division and sale of parts of the Great Sioux Reservation were high. She made the trip to North Dakota with her son. In the movie, Caroline Weldon came alone as a lonely widow searching for herself, on a mission to paint the portrait of Sitting Bull. Also at this time, a religious "Ghost Dance Movement" was spreading eastward to the Plains; it called on the Indians to dance and chant for the rising up of deceased relatives and return of the buffalo. When the movement reached Standing Rock, the dancers danced at Sitting Bull's camp. The nearby white settlers were alarmed, and Sitting Bull was shot during his arrest.
While I understand that this story focused on the relationship between Catherine and Sitting Bull, so much of their lives were passed over or skewed.
I came away feeling mixed about this movie: the New Mexico landscapes are striking; I enjoyed this look at the life and culture of the Plains Indians; the relationship bewteen Jessica Chastain, (Caroline Weldon), and Michael Greyeyes, (Sitting Bull) was moving, and their acting was strong, but the story was misleading. Still, I think it's a film worth seeing, but I don't understand why this story wasn't told historically as it's such an important piece of history. What did they think they were improving by doing a bait and switch on facts? -
My wife and I found this movie streaming on Amazon Prime, with high-def picture and D-D surround sound. Quite nice presentation and beautiful cinematography. Filmed in New Mexico.
It was the 1880s and Native Americans had already been defeated and controlled by the American government. A New York painter, Jessica Chastain in the role of Catherine Weldon, becomes sympathetic to the plight of the Natives and decides to travel to North Dakota to meet Sitting Bull, paint his portrait, and assist him and his people resist.
The movie isn't completely fact-based, it doesn't even mention her son, and the events that led to Sitting Bull's murder in 1890 are highly dramatized in the script, but overall it is a good dramatic depiction of what the relationship consisted of.
Canadian actor Michael Greyeyes is very good as Sitting Bull, powerful chief relegated to potato farming. This is a good movie but it is a sad reminder of how poorly the Native Americans were treated back then. -
Ed-Shullivan17 May 2020Well done historical story line between native Indian Chief Sitting Bull and New York socialite and artist Catherine Weldon. The landscape of the western plain fields where the native Indians main food source the buffalo were driven into near extinction, and the Indian reserves were lacking of any form of prosperity painted a picture of how the United States military power were still struggling with the embarrassment of General George Armstrong Custer's complete annihilation in 1876 at Little Big Horn made famous by Sitting Bull's victory and known as Custer's Last Stand.
Jessica Chastain plays American socialite/portrait painter Catherine Weldon and she is desperate to paint the portrait of the great Indian Chief Sitting Bull played exceptionally well by actor Michael Greyeyes. Their friendship grows out of their respective and very different upbringings and life histories as well as their respective stubborn personalities. The symbolism of the white stallion Rico who was given to Sitting Bull by the great westerner Buffalo Bill is not lost on the audience as Catherine Weldon's childhood fear of horses (thus her preference to walk everywhere) is eventually defeated, ironically so is Sitting Bull to whom the audience is sympathetic towards the plight of the Native Indian(s).
This is a simple yet historically valuable film that as I plopped the disc into our Blu Ray player very late at night even Mrs. Shullivan watched intently never falling asleep (which she would normally do) as both of us enjoyed the performances by Jessica Chastain, Michael Greyeyes and Sam Rockwell as well as the historical value of this moment in time in the year of 1890.
I give the film a credible 7 out of 10 IMDB rating. -
There's an emotional sense to the film, the images, direction and dialogue have a honest but poetic tone. Cinematography was beautiful. And it's a tragic and moving subject. The destruction of a varied and rich culture, the nations and the resignation of these indigenous people. I felt the profound loss through the character of Catherine Weldon, the determined painter who was captured by the spirit of Sitting Bull while trying to capture him in paint.
The performances were noteworthy, I always like the projects chosen by Jessica Chastain and Sam Rockwell. And Michael Greyeyes has a lot of charisma portraying Sitting Bull especially with scenes with Jessica.
However, the story does lack in some pacing and factualness. The story was a very loose representation but it still makes it's point in the theme. Some have suggested this a white savior movie and it may well be. Yet, one doesn't take away a sense of pride in any of it. It's still a white story, just a sad and not particularly flattering one. -
Entertaining. Well acted. Good cinematography. Slow paced, character-driven, decent script that does have several historical inaccuracies, but also portrays some informative historical facts on the 1887 Dawes Act, the Sioux Bill, the treatment of the Hunkpapa Lakota Sioux and their leader Sitting Bull, and the unrest in the Dakota Territory. Not sure why it has the R rating, no blatant nudity or language with 2 mildly violent scenes. If you watch, not for historical accuracy, but purely for entertainment value, this is a compelling and enjoyable movie worth 7 stars IMHO! (to get the historically accurate info, I suggest looking up Sitting Bull and Catherine Weldon after watching the film and check out the Imdb trivia posted for this movie) /April 2021.
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While the acting was interesting, the false history deters from reality in such a way that you are left feeling underwhelmed. At one point Sam Rockwell's character talks about "Indian aggression" as a false justification for his own actions. He fails to mention that any "aggression" was defensive as Caucasian westward expansion meant the massacre and down right attempted genocide of Indigenous Americans at that time, a fact that is completely ignored. Sitting Bull's people did not move East to attack anyone, the Caucasian settlers were the ones moving west into his territory to push his people off of their land one way or another. Sitting Bull's band or village was not involved in the scrimmages which took place when the caucasians first entered their territory, but the government accused them anyway and attacked his village for no reason killing many children, women and men. The ghost dance was also peaceful but government officials massacred the dancers, again for no reason. These facts were conveniently left out of the movie and the ghost dance scene was devoid of feeling of what really happened to those innocent people. Such a shame that the producers of this movie had a real chance to finally tell the truth and instead opted for the more "accepted" lie.
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I absolutely loved Michael Greyeyes portrayal of one of the most iconic Native people in history. It was refreshing to see a Native person being seen as a 3 dimensional person with a sense of humor, intelligence, humility, etc. I am a native woman and was delighted to see our people seen as people. The story wasn't word for word accurate but the heart of the story was captured with grace & dignity. Thank you for making this film and respecting the person & people it represents.
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krocheav27 April 2019Loosely based on fact this interesting historical drama tells of Catherine Weldon's (Jessica Chastain) journey out west to paint a portrait of Sitting Bull. Saskatchewan Cree Indian, Michael Greyeyes gives a slick performance as the famous chief, during his latter days on the reservation. It might seem a curious topic for English director; Susanna White to tackle but she turns in a competent (if a little slow) rendition of this unique event. The New Mexico locations provide a nice setting for this rather odd story - although historical accuracy seems to be a little wanting. The white woman and the chief sharing a Tepee together might be a bit of a stretch - just as the ending also seems to wander from other recollections, still, much time has passed and recollections do become hazy. Some may find it no Dances With Wolves but it should maintain interest for those with knowledge of this sad time and the tragic events that unfolded during a dark phase of pioneering USA history. It looks at the pros and cons of Ratification and Ghost Dancing - the latter that caused controversy for its war connotations.
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jackjack-226 November 2018This movie is to me as part American Indian enjoyable as it is told. I disagree with Roger Ebert's comments that it is too violent. However, I do not give it a high rating because it fictionalizes the story. The woman, Catherine Weldon, had an unsavory past which is not disclosed in the movie. She had been married but ran away with another man with whom she had a child. He also left her and her husband divorced her. She had a dream of living with Sioux. She joined the National Indian Defense Assn. and contrary to what is stated in the movie, it was on behalf of the Assn. that she traveled to the Dakota Territory. She did not go there for the purpose of painting Sitting Bull. And her son accompanied her on the journey and actually lived with the Sioux. When the Ghost Dancers became active, she warned Sitting Bull against them and warned him as to what would happen if he supported them. As a result, Sitting Bull rejected her and because of that and that her son was ill, she left him. Her son died on the way as she moved to Kansas City. She had a small inheritance which funded her trip but she never had any political influence as she asserted in the movie.
Aside from these discrepancies, the picture is a lesson in what happened to the Sioux and the acting is good. Setting aside the involvement of the artist, the overall story is informative and the scenery is grand. -
krnmrcl30 August 2018Thank you for bringing this wonderful historical movie to the big screen. Jessica was outstanding, as were all the Native American actors. I had not seen any of them before in a film, they were superb! Sam Rockwell always plays such a GREAT BADASS. He should get a award nomination as well for his work in this movie! My hope also is that Native Americans continually regain their power and their beautiful culture and spirituality stays intact for eternity.
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itsreardon2 September 2018Perhaps romanticized and a bit ethereal this movie relates a bitter pill of history using regular doses of symbolism. Definitely worth watching.
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jboorn-828592 September 2018Although the movie was pleasing to watch it lacked accuracy in that the main characters were not portrayed as the correct age. The real persons would have been 10 to 15 years older. Also no create was given to the book from which this was taken. Book by the same name by author Eileen Pollack - 2002. Also, the facts of Mrs Weldon have been significantly changed from the information as related in the book.
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jbojanis-128 April 2019As entertainment I gave this film 7. I rate on entertainment when I am lacking any particular factual info on films based on real events. I must add that I am a minor fan of Sam Rockwell, but I have gained much more respect for his talent as an actor. I think he is under rated generally. He stole his scenes in this film. His attention to his character's traits and his subtle tweaks to this character are impressive.
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SnoopyStyle2 April 2021Catherine Weldon (Jessica Chastain) is a widowed painter in 1890 New York City. She decides to travel to Dakota by herself to paint a portrait of Sitting Bull (Michael Greyeyes). It's highly unusual for a woman to be so independent. Local commander James McLaughlin (Ciarán Hinds) would like to see the hated liberal be arrested and sent back to New York. Colonel Silas Grove (Sam Rockwell) has been sent by the War Department to push through a new treaty which would take half of the tribe's land. General Cook arrives to take charge but also is seeking an opportunity to avenge Little Big Horn.
Director Susanna White has infused a modern romantic feel and modern social justice understanding into this little known story. Quite frankly, I never heard of this story. My biggest issue is the look of Michael Greyeyes. My recollection of Sitting Bull is the photographs of the weathered old man. Greyeyes looks much younger. I had to check and he's supposed to be 60 at that time. More importantly, those pictures are pretty much what he looks like at this time. Greyeyes looks like 40-50. He's at least a decade too young and his face doesn't have the prairie sun pounding on it all his life. I had to give this up since White wants to add a pulpy romantic feel to the movie.
The main complaint from critics seem to be that this is injecting modern social issues into history. I have a lot less problem with that. We get our understanding of the past from movies which are always tainted by the sensibilities of when they're made. In some ways, the reactions from the white people seems right. They would be hostile. The native people is presented with a bit too much nobility although I love the train porter early in the movie. I would modify the Indian stealing her stuff to add more menace. He could push her down and steal what she's carrying. As it stands, the scene is used as comedy. All in all, I like the characters and this story. -
bjpafa18 September 2018It is not a western, it is about reseting Indian affairs to some historical acuity. It is about women that take the lead, remembering us that, besides Jorge Sand or Emily Dickinson, the list goes on a on, as it has no end? It's smart in a practical way of showing, with a touch of paint and potato farming.
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Tina_jeppesen3 September 2018I liked this movie I thought it was sweet yes it made me cry then I read the real story n it totally ruined it for me ugh ...just look it up...for one thing the lady was a pretty hardcore activist traveling with a 12 year old son she had from an affair with a married man?! What happened to the sheltered ladylike painter who mourned for a year cuz her husband passed,,, oh ya thats right Hollywood just made that crap up so we'd like her more like we can't make those decisions for ourselves based on real human beings with flaws lol....so ya there's other stuff too sitting Bull actually kicked her outta the reservation eventually or something ...hmm ya not like in the movie at all- at least not the love story part or how the characters are portrayed
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Knowing nothing of the story upon which this film centres, I have since viewing same been led to learn more about the treatment of Sitting Bull and his people leading up to the human tragedy of the massacre at Wounded Knee. Obviously this beautifully shot movie with its understated wonderful music score and very strong performances of lead characters, has left a deep impression. Justifiably, some reviews here have found fault with the story's historical inaccuracy such as the age of the two major characters. It seems that dramatic licence is always a component of movies based on real events. But this should not detract from all too real emotions engendered, not only between the artist and her subject but by the embittered townsfolk who see Sitting Bull and his people as true savages. A film of beauty to be recommended.
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tjgorman6625 August 2018Had a tough time following the plot, it screamed a female version of Dances with Wolves, without the romantic connection. so close to being a good movie
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westsideschl8 September 2018I applaud the intent, but lost confidence in the accuracy after just a bit of watching. Right off the bat when you toss a wood framed & backed & w/canvas painting into the water it doesn't sink. Good dramatic affect however. When they do a "it's suddenly raining scene" and the sky looks calmly blue, well ok, more dramatic affect. Asking for $1000 ($27,000 today) to pose for portrait seems exaggerated. All the antagonisms shown makes for good movie intrigue, but didn't seem believable. Chastain wasn't believable as Catherine Weldon who was a Native American rights advocate & did paint Sitting Bull, but not particularly well (in my opinion). Filming in N.M. didn't help especially w/the Dakotas having such beauty, authenticity, and willing stand-ins. We don't hear about his acts of bravery, his journey into Canada, his friendship w/Annie Oakley, his touring in a wild west show. The circumstances of his killing were misrepresented. Not shown was her fall out with S.B. and her leaving and life afterwards.
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If you are looking for typical western, full of fighting and action, that you will be disappointed. For some this movie is too slow, for me it was perfect. Beautiful, amazing, honest. Managed to show piece of history, and also of two people who, despite being of so different backgrounds, managed to find more than just business contract. Beautiful scenery, real history, and pain.
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classicsoncall19 February 2021As so often happens with movies 'based on a true story', what's represented here is fictionalized for the sake of making a picture. I always have to wonder why that's the case, as telling an accurate story would almost always be better that what we've just witnessed. With that caveat, the film does offer a generally accurate description of the mistreatment Native American Indians received at the hands of the federal government, which viewed them as savages unable to conform to the ways of 'civilization'. Historically, the real Caroline Weldon was an Indian rights activist, in the film her name is changed to Catherine, and her mission is more of a personal nature. Portrayed by Jessica Chastain, Catherine demonstrates great perseverance and courage in pursuing her mission to paint a portrait of noted Teton Dakota Chief Sitting Bull. Michael Greyeyes is sublime in the role of a formidable warrior grown weary of fighting against a formidable opposition he sees as implacable. As related here, the picture offers the sad story of the passing of the Old West and the death of a noble warrior, entering the spirit world of his forefathers as he himself saw in a vision. Most inspiring to see was the 'ghost dance' of Sitting Bull's white horse Rico, paying tribute to his fallen master at the sound of a gunshot.
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hcstringer23 September 201830 seconds in to the film they were no longer historic. Most of the film is strictly entertainment, not historically correct.
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ma-cortes24 March 2023Catherine Weldon (Jessica Chastian) , a portrait painter from 1890s Brooklyn, travels to Dakota to paint a portrait of Sitting Bull (Michael Greyeyes) and becomes embroiled in the Lakota peoples' struggle over the rights to their land. And while she is suffering harassment and violence by the white inhabitants and confronting the US cavalry officers : Groves (Sam Rockwell) , James McLaughlin (Ciarán Hinds) and General Crook (Bill Camp). There she defies the Western times !.
It is a historical drama directed by British filmmaker Susanna White (Masters of Sex) and has a cast headed by Jessica Chastain. The film is inspired by real events that are collected in Elleen Pollack's novel: ¨Woman walking ahead: In search of Catherines Weldon and Sitting Bull¨ published in 2002. The film contains small brushstrokes that do not correspond to reality. The film suggests that Caroline and Sitting Bull did not know each other prior to his arrival at Standing Rock, which is inaccurate, but they began to meet around 1888, after he was in Washington, discussing Dakota land prices. Also, his death is not historically accurate. The motion picture displays a colorful cinematography by Mike Eley and sensitive score by George Fenton , being competently directed by Susanna White.
Based on Caroline Weldon (1844 - 1921) life , she was a Swiss-American artist and activist with the National Indian Defense Association. Weldon became a confidante and the personal secretary to the Lakota Sioux Indian leader Sitting Bull during the time when Plains Indians had adopted the Ghost Dance movement. Weldon became committed to the cause of Native Americans. Upon her mother's death in 1887, she inherited some money which gave her the means to pursue her interests freely, including her interest in art. Sometime thereafter, she changed her name to Caroline Weldon, presumably to allow her to put her past behind her, although her exact reasons for this action remain unknown. In the summer of 1889, Caroline Weldon traveled to Dakota Territory to fulfill her dream of living among the Sioux. She joined the National Indian Defense Association (NIDA), headed by Dr. Thomas Bland and his wife Cora Bland. Weldon began to aid the Sioux in their struggle to fight the US government's attempt via the Dawes Act to expropriate vast portions of the Great Sioux Reservation for the purpose of opening some up for white settlement and with the intent of rendering the creations of the two new states of North Dakota and South Dakota economically viable. Weldon befriended Sitting Bull, leader of the traditionalist faction among the Sioux, and she acted as his secretary, interpreter, and advocate. She painted four portraits of Sitting Bull, two of which are known to have survived. One is now held by the North Dakota Historical Society in Bismarck, North Dakota, and the other at the Historic Arkansas Museum in Little Rock, Arkansas. After she had moved with her young son Christie to live at Sitting Bull's compound on the Grand River at Standing Rock Indian Reservation, her confrontations and open defiance of Indian Agent James McLaughlin engendered enmity. McLaughlin initiated a smear campaign, resulting in her being reviled by much of the white community and vilified in the national press. When the Ghost Dance Movement swept through the Indian Reservations of the West in the summer of 1890, she denounced the movement. Weldon warned Sitting Bull that the Ghost Dance movement would give the government a pretext to harm him and to summon the military for intervention which would destroy the Sioux Nation. Sitting Bull turned against her and, upon her son falling ill in November, she decided to leave. The subsequent events of Sitting Bull's murder on December 15, 1890, and the Wounded Knee massacre on December 29, 1890, added to her sense of futility and failure.