Wednesday, January 3, 2018
Westerns
In two paragraphs, cinematically discuss the evolution of the western in regards to its treatment of Native Americans. Choose either Stagecoach or The Searchers AND Little Big Man. Include at least one quote from a review of the movies. You should discuss how the Native Americans and whites are presented cinematically, and be sure to use specific examples from the films.
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The Genre of the Western is one of the most quintessential, long-lasting and ideologically charged components of the entirety of American cinematic history. Ever since its inception in 1903 with "The Great Train Robbery", the genre has underwent the full life cycle any genre goes through, from the straight romanticized portrayals of the American west from the early half of the 20th century, to the later satirical and deconstructive films of the later century. And as the genre has evolved for such a long period of time, looking back over its development allows us to see how many staples of its genre has changed through the growing societal awareness of the people. Among the most critical of these components is the unavoidable insult in how Westerns have long portrayed the treatment of Native Americans cinematically and socially, and how later installments have attempted to address the issue in their work.
ReplyDeleteConsider first the 1939 film "Stagecoach". Long considered one of the earliest western masterpieces and the debut of John Wayne as a starring performance, it is unavoidable to watch this film without feeling intense discomfort in the frankly lazy, antagonistic and downright inhuman treatment of the Apache. It is not only that they appear antagonists, shot by the protagonists in almost gleeful fashion, it is that there is no discernible reason for their antagonism even remotely present in the film. Frequently it refers to Geronimo, a famous Apache revolutionary, as if he were some sort of Bandit King, revising history to benefit the narrative of innocent white settlers. Several characters even scream "Savage" upon the mere appearance of a Native American woman in their camp, and their fear is confirmed as she later steals their horses and rides off to reveal their location to the warring Apache. As Roger Ebert puts it in his otherwise favorable review, "The film's attitudes toward Native Americans are unenlightened. The Apaches are seen simply as murderous savages; there is no suggestion the white men have invaded their land."
Now, contrast this to the 1970 "Little Big Man" and its portrayal of the Cheyenne. The film is almost outrageous in the transparency of its themes-the Cheyenne even refer to themselves as, simply, the Human Beings- but in no way is this to its detriment. As Roger Ebert puts it, "the phrase is literal and meaningful and we don't laugh". There is nothing but pure empathy for their struggle, and the very real struggle they faced against the American government. We get to see their rituals, their culture, their philosophies and even their internal conflicts, and despite the beautiful intricacies of their world, they are doomed to be besieged upon and whittled down by a fraudulent, abominable institution-the US government and the narcissistic exploitation of the white man. It's pure, unbridled tragedy, and it's the truth.
The Western has been, and still is, the most unmistakably American film genre within the lexicon of film. Western films often depict the relationship between white settlers and Native Americans, however the manner in which this relationship is treated has evolved throughout the twentieth century. John Ford's 1956 film "The Searchers" represents a more traditional and problematic depiction of Native Americans. A 2014 review of the film in The Guardian described the film as "full of savagery and tragedy, blood and thunder". A central theme in the film is the idea that Native Americans (or "Injuns", as they were crudely called) are savages that need to be tamed. This is clear in the cinematic portrayal of the Native Americans as well: they are rarely framed at the same level as their white counterparts, and in fight scenes, shots rarely focus on one Native American: rather, they are shot as a large group, implying that the white man does not perceive them as individuals.
ReplyDeleteOnly fourteen years later, Arthur Penn's 1970 film "Little Big Man" paints a much different picture of Native Americans as opposed to "The Searchers". In Roger Ebert's review of the film, he stated ""Little Big Man" gives us the flavor of the Cheyenne nation before white men brought uncivilization to the West". While "The Searchers" focused on the white characters and portrayed the Native Americans as a monolith, "Little Big Man" develops the Native Americans in a much more detailed manner. The scenes in which the titular character shares conversation with the leader of the "Human Beings", Old Lodge Skins are a prominent example of this. Taking place within a confined teepee, the palpable intimacy allows for ample character development for both Little Big Man and Old Lodge Skins, as well as humanizing the Human Being as a whole, which is a far cry from the characterization of Native Americans in "The Searchers".
According to the American film Institute, western films are described as "set in The American West that embody the spirit the struggle and the demise of the new frontier". This visual embodiment of the spirit and demise of the new frontier is often depicted in many ways. One of the most common ways this is portrayed is through the relationship between white settlers and Native Americans. In fact this was a very popular theme for western films. However as time continued the relationship between Native Americans and white settlers had gradually shifted. Initially the depiction of native Americans was almost always negative and they were attributed Savage and inhumane characteristics. For example in John Ford's film, "The Searchers", The native Americans are depicted as murderers and savages who are ruthless and violent in nature. They are often portrayed to kill and harm the white settlers who are in contrast depicted as innocent. In a 2013 review by the New York Times, the Native Americans, more specifically the Comanches, are described as "The most relentless and feared war machine in the southwest". This emphasizes the view that Native Americans were murderous and savage people. This is also illustrated cinematically as the camera only ever focuses on the violent aftermath caused by the Native Americans. The audience only sees their "violent" nature and the camera only shows the white settlers suffering and making them appear as the victims. Along with that, their entire group is generalized to be ruthless and no individuals are shown to be otherwise.
ReplyDeleteIn contrast, Arthur Penn's film, "Little big man" conveys native Americans in a more positive light. In fact the Apache tribe or even referred to as "the human beings" which contrasts the earlier depiction of native Americans. In this film the native Americans are more human and less violent and murderous. In fact they take in a white boy and teach him the ways of life and a valuable lessons he will need for later. In a review by Roger Ebert, he discusses the idea that this film "gives us a flavor of the Cheyenne nation before white man brought uncivilization to the west". Unlike in "The Searchers", this film illustrates Native American society before white settlers took that away from them and destroyed it. Through costume and set design, the Native Americans are depicted as welcoming and good people. They take in a young boy and dress him in their traditional clothing, teach him their tribal culture. The boy sleeps with them, eats with them, and talks to them in the teepee and becomes a part of their life. As a result, this positive portrayal of Native Americans in this film contrasts the negative one in "The Searchers".
Westerns have evolved in their portrayal of Native Americans in film. In thirty one years Native Americans went from being made fun of and disrespected, to being almost revered. "Stagecoach" (1939) shed a bad, humiliating light on Native Americans. We see them from White man's point of view, which in this time was uneducated and not the truth. Native Americans are shown as vengeful, violent, and spiteful. We see that the white men are always afraid of the Indians, but cinematically we never see them until the near end when they attack the men. There is no implication of land being stolen from the Native Americans, just through dialogue we know that they are after the White men, seemingly for no reason. There is also an over sexualization of Native American women in this film, where an Apache wife is shown as very beautiful in traditional woven Native American clothing, but later sultrous, heard singing a seductive Spanish song. All of this was not really made to be offensive. As Roger Ebert says a review "The film's attitudes toward Native Americans are unenlightened."
ReplyDeleteLate in 1970, Native Americans have been portrayed in the totally opposite way in "Little Big Man". They are revered by the main character, Jack Crabb, a white man who was saved by the Human Being tribe as a young boy. We can see how unified, connected to the earth, and how peaceful Native Americans are cinematically by them being shown in lots of open space away from everyone in bands with each other. They wear traditional clothing and speak English, but are first shown as using their hands to communicate setting them apart from the white men. This implies their intelligence, and is furthered with the characterization of Grandfather. He is the leader of the tribe and is shown having wide knowledge, so much so that Jack turned to him for advice whenever he was at his lowest. They are also in contrast to "Stagecoach" portrayed more as victims. Arthur Penn uses the narrative to depict the white men in a different way than most Westerns. They are the ones taking over Naive American land promised to them, and attacking in attempt to wipe out the tribe. Vincent Canby of the New York Times states "Mr. Penn obviously takes seriously the vanishing of the race that managed to give Jack "a vision of a moral order in the universe.'" He uses the Native Americans to create a moral standard. The difference in the depiction of Native Americans were vast and as people became more educated and aware the portrayal in cinema became more positive.
The Western film is a genre of film that is typically characterized as having stories that are centered in the setting of the American Old West. Western films often involve adventure, cowboys, vigilantes, and sometimes Native Americans. The way Native Americans were portrayed in these films has changed drastically over the years and its representative of how American society has changed over time. In the 1956 western, “The Searchers”, a civil war veteran goes on an adventure to save his niece from the Comanche. In this film, the Native Americans are portrayed as savage and inhuman throughout the film - both storywise and cinematically. Storywise, the Comanche are very violent and brutal. They are heavily antagonized and they do inhumane things to the innocent white settlers. Cinematically, the Comanche are always portrayed in a collective and this could represent how they are portrayed without individuality, a human trait. This was common in older westerns. In an article, Roger Ebert stated, “The Searchers was made in the dying days of the classic Western, which faltered when Indians ceased to be typecast as savages.”
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, the opposite takes place in “Little Big Man”, a 1970 western. 14 years later, the portrayal of Native Americans is completely flipped. In this film, the Native Americans refer to themselves as the “Human Beings”. The Native Americans in this film actually speak English and this helps the audience to relate with these characters even more. Unlike, “The Searchers”, the Native Americans are often shown in close up or medium shots that give the characters more individuality. Last but not least, the white American soldiers are portrayed as the ones who are violent and brutal while the Native Americans are the innocent victims.
From the start, Native Americans were completely excluded from accurately portraying their cultures. In early Westerns, the idea of a Native American playing a Native American was unheard of. The parts of Native Americans were usually played by non-indigenous white actors who relied on bodypaint and wigs to portray an actual Native American. Almost every early Western portrayed Native Americans as hostile, uncivilized animals. They would ride on horseback ambushing trains and caravans, attack and destroy settlers land, among other things.
ReplyDeleteThis portrayal of Native Americans is clear in “The Searchers.” In this film, a civil war veteran and his posse search the western desert for his niece who was captured by Comanche Native Americans. The Comanche are portrayed as violent and ruthless, while their pursuers are portrayed as just, kind individuals who show mercy and restraint. However, in the 1970 Western “Little Big Man,” the script is flipped. The Native Americans in this film are referred to as “Human Beings” and are portrayed as the victim while the white settlers are portrayed as the evil ruthless enemy.
The Western is a staple American film genre ever-tied to the idea of The American Dream and Western Expansion. Story wise, these tales often focus on the western settler and tales of cowboys, bandits, and Native American Indians. These stories vary in their treatment of the Native American however, as a result of both the time of the making of the movies and the time of which they depict.
ReplyDeleteJohn Ford's 1956 The Searchers, for example, provides a typical depiction of Native Americans: The wild brute. Here, the Native Americans are usually shown in groups and packs, never giving any focus to any specific members and keeping them instead pictured as some kind of hoarde. They are also often depicted from a distance, creating the image of wild predators watching prey from a distance. And in thier actions throughout the movie they only attack the protagonists, never actually are shown with any humanizing traits such as family or children.
Contrast this with Arthur Penn's 1970 feature Little Big Man and you then see the contrast between the two portrayals. Here, the Native Americans are very humanized. This begins with the name of the tribe given most focus, The Human Beings. The Human Beings arw depicted as people with traditions, values, and families with emotions, who instead of being violent by nature are pushed to it by the white man who in comparison is shown as prideful (through low-angled shots) and bloodlusty. In comparison to the wide, group-focus shots in The Searchers, we here instead are presented with close up shots in every interaction Jack has with them, humanizing them and giving them more depth of character as a result.
Film has always been a reflection of the time period it was created in. In the earlier portion of the 20th century, even moving on to the end, the same prejudices of Native Americans were still thriving. This translated directly to the film screen where Native Americans were portrayed as uncivilized savages with an unexplained thirst for bloodshed. They had little to no meaningful representation on screen and were explicitly and implicitly portrayed as inferior. As times changed and the stigma attached to Native Americans dissipated so did the poor representation in film. Roger Ebert says “Although both movies have many flaws in depicting Native Americans, both the Searchers and Little Big Man are a step in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteMany films like Stagecoach portrayed white people on center stage and the Native Americans as one track adversaries with the sole purpose to cause trouble. However films like The Searchers began to move slightly in the right direction, giving real roles to Native Americans. In the scene where Ethan is making exchanges with the Natives, they are shown, and don’t share the screen. However the still are not seen as full fledged characters. They simply nod complicity and try on white people clothes so the audience can laugh at their expense. As they nod and smile a voiceover plays explaining the situation instead of giving the Natives a voice to do so themselves. Every time they are shown the focus of the frame was on their white counterparts. They were nothing more than a device to get the characters where they need to be. The scene where the buried Native gets shot is representative as a whole. Native Americans are given some time yet are treated with a complete disregard to their status as people.
Little Big Man was a step further in the right direction. For once Native Americans were protected in a positive light, repeatedly outshining the white characters they were being compared to. They are given full speaking roles with impacts to the narrative. They could even speak English, which although probably not historically correct, portrayed them as humans that are more than a nameless road block or incomprehensible savage.
Essentially white people in older films were given the screen time and dialogue to be presented as complex characters while the Native Americans were inhuman narrative pawns.
The Western film is a popular genre depicting the adventurous lifestyle of gunslingers in the American frontier, often involving their relationship with Native American tribes. As public perception toward Native Americans has evolved over time, so has their portrayal in film. John Ford’s 1956 film The Searchers displays some of the more traditional and prejudiced views of Native Americans that were common at the time. In the film, Ethan Edwards, a former Confederate soldier, spends years obsessively hunting down the Comanche tribe that has killed most of his brother’s family and kidnapped his niece. Although John Ford appears to make some attempt to override and comment on the stereotypes of Native Americans, many aspects of the film also uphold these stereotypes. For example, Scar, the leader of the Comanche, is played by a white man in brown makeup and tribal paint. He is one of the only Native American characters that we see close-up, and he is not even played by a Native American actor. When Ethan and Martin reach a military fort, they discover a few young girls who have been found after living with Native Americans. The girls have a wild, ragged look to them, and cannot string together a coherent sentence, promoting the damaging idea that Native Americans lived like savages. One of the most problematic parts of the film is Ethan Edwards’ character arc. As Roger Ebert stated in his review of the film “Ford knew that his hero's hatred of Indians was wrong, but his glorification of Ethan's search invites admiration for a twisted man. Defenders of the film point to the famous scene where Ethan embraces his niece instead of killing her. Can one shot redeem a film?” Throughout most of The Searchers, Ethan is portrayed as an obvious bigot who is not meant to be likeable. He is openly hostile toward Martin once he learns that he is 1/8th Cherokee, and it seems like he is motivated just as much by a desire to cause harm to the Comanche as he is to rescue Debbie. In one scene, he continues to shoot at a band of Comanche as they retreat, and kills buffalo to deplete the Comanche food source out of spite. He is not a sympathetic character, but Ford attempts to redeem him in one of the final scenes, where he decides to bring Debbie home rather than shoot her as he had promised. He does not overcome any of his prejudice toward the Comanche, but Ford portrays him as a sort of reformed antihero for making the unremarkable decision not to kill the white woman that he has spent several years attempting to rescue.
ReplyDeleteIn comparison, Arthur Penn’s 1970 film Little Big Man portrays Native Americans in a much more positive light. To begin with, this film actually stars Native American actors, rather than using white actors to play Native American roles. Little Big Man follows the life of Jack Crabb, a man raised by the Cheyenne, who flips between life with Native Americans and white settlers. The Cheyenne tribe that Jack has been raised by is called the Human Beings, which directly opposes the idea presented in earlier Western’s that Native Americans were savage or animalistic. Unlike The Searchers, this film spends a great deal of time focusing on the Human Beings daily lives and interactions. Earlier portrayals would only show Native Americans as a group, but the focus on individuals in Little Big Man conveys that they are just ordinary people trying to do the best that they can in a society that does not welcome them. This film also depicts unprovoked attacks on Native American camps by General Custer and his men. Custer is portrayed as self-obsessed fool that Jack ironically reveres in the first half of the film. His character does not have any admirable qualities, but he is admired nonetheless. This satirical portrayal of the overconfident General Custer is a swift departure from earlier Westerns like The Searchers, where the white characters are given some sort of justification for their treatment of Native Americans. Custer’s character and this film as a whole makes no attempt to justify violent behavior against Native Americans.
DeleteHistory has not been kind to the Native Americans, and Western films often reflected the stereotypes held against their people. This is true of John Ford’s 1939 movie, Stagecoach, in which Native Americans are portrayed as savages and mindless killers. For much of the movie, the screen is absent of them, unlike the many more personal close-up scenes of the main characters throughout the movie. The Innkeeper’s Native American wife steals away the crew’s horses in the dead of night, where the poor lighting indicating their negative motives. When the natives attack the stagecoach they attack in a ridiculously large hoard that is filmed in either long shots or close-ups where the natives are unrecognizable as individuals. Contrastingly, we get very clear shots of the white characters in the stagecoach dying gruesomely to “Indian” arrows. As Becky Straus writes in “Indians in Stagecoach,” “We think of them as faceless savages who want to kill the characters we do get to know and respect during the first three-quarters of the film.”
ReplyDeleteThings do improve a lot in terms of Native American portrayal when it comes to Little Big Man, directed by Arthur Penn in 1970. The time period was much different then, with the prevailing spirit being to lift up minority groups that had been trodden on before by whites. This movie certainly does that. For starters, we get to see all aspects of the lives of the Cheyenne, not just when they’re attacking the whites. Now it’s the first Americans being humanized by close-ups and natural eye-level shots—they even call themselves the Human Beings. Whereas, the white characters are satirized and made to seem ridiculous, like Mrs. Pendrake preaching purity while she went and had extra-marital affairs, or General Custer ranting and raving about attacking the Native American village and whether Jack was telling him the truth about whether the “Injuns” were there. This interpretation takes it a little too far, making it somewhat unbelievable. But showing that Native Americans were people too, a radical idea at the time, resulted in the making of a radical and starkly contrasting portrayal of Indigenous people versus the whites.
The Western has been around for the entirety of cinematic history. Characterized by shots of spacious landscapes, cowboy protagonists, and the frontier, the genre depicts the brutality and spirit of the wild, wild West. Every good Western needs an antagonist who causes conflict, and unfortunately and unfairly, Native Americans were often selected to fulfill this role. Generally, they were portrayed as uncivilized savages who attack villages and homes without mercy, such is the case in John Ford’s 1939 Western film Stagecoach. Towards the end of the film, a group of Apaches begin to follow the stagecoach, shooting its passengers with bows and arrows. Roger Ebert wrote in his review of the film, “The Apaches are seen simply as murderous savages; there is no suggestion the white men have invaded their land.” This attack comes out of virtually nowhere, accompanied by action-packed music. The choice of song used during this scene automatically characterizes the Natives as the enemy because of its heart-pounding rhythm and volume. One long shot shows the large group of Apaches, yelling like animals, on horses swarming into frame as they follow behind the stagecoach. The shot composition frames the passengers, the white men and women, as the underdogs, as the victims. They are clearly outnumbered by the Apaches, for the stagecoach takes up a much smaller portion of the frame than the Native Americans do. Depicted as violent and ruthless without reason, Stagecoach portrays Native Americans both simplistically and negatively.
ReplyDeleteLittle Big Man is a Western film that goes in the opposite direction. Not only is it a comedy, something uncharacteristic of the Western genre, but Native Americans are represented with kindness while the white man (in this case, the United States calvary) is depicted as the villain. The scene in which General Custer and his men attack the Cheyenne camp is bloody and tragic for the calvary has no heart, killing women and children without second thought. Before this happens, however, Jack and Sunshine share an intimate family moment with their baby. Close-up shots show them smiling brightly, admiring their child before the worst happens. Their peace of mind is broken by the neighing of the horses. Things begin to escalate quickly and the shot durations become shorter, moving swiftly to accentuate the scene’s anxiousness. The closeness contrasted with cruelty show the Native Americans as peaceful and unsuspecting while the calvary, composed of whites, are clearly corrupt in both their hearts and their minds. The portrayal of Native Americans and whites in cinema has most definitely evolved since 1939. In more modern days, they are shown as they actually were instead of the savages they were once painted as.