Movie Reviews by Edwin Jahiel

POWWOW HIGHWAY (1989)

Contemporary Native American (Gary Farmer) from reservation --a hulky, simplistic fellow-- buys the most decrepit junk car imaginable but (improbably) makes it run and drives an activist friend (A. Martinez) to New Mexico, to rescue from jail the latter's sister , framed by racist cops. Violence, comedy and mysticism in this unusual film enhance its interesting political and ethnological aspects about a neglected nation. There's a fantasy side too. The picture's freshness and social commitment are both appealing and jolting. (Edwin Jahiel)