“‘Wild Indian’s Generational Pain Is Scattershot But True”

I’m not accusing Lyle Mitchell Corbine Jr. of racism, of course. I’m noting that the title of his very good movie, Wild Indian, makes use of an old racist way of describing kids acting out and bein’ wacky. There’s a sly kind of power there, even if the application of the term only goes as far as the title. No one in Wild Indian actually acts wild, at least the Indians don’t.

For me, the film mostly comes down to Michael Greyeyes, an excellent actor turning in a staggeringly good performance; the movie hinges on him and I think would be much less successful without his work. I kept waiting for Wild Indian to find a groove to hang its ideas on, but as the header says, the movie feels scattershot. Good, but scattershot.

I liked it. You can read my full review for Paste Magazine to find out why.

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