Movie Review: Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee (2007)

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, an HBO film, is of course based on the well known Dee Brown book about how American Indians were displaced as the U.S. expanded west, eventually ending in bloodshed. It is a tragic tale and a reminder that the United States has committed its fair share of injustice over the course of its history.

As one would expect from an HBO movie, Wounded Knee stars several recognizable actors, including Aidan Quinn ("The Book of Daniel"), Adam Beach (Flags of our Fathers), August Schellenberg (you may not know the name, but he plays just about every Indian American when a role is available), J.K. Simmons (Spider-Man), Colm Feore (Chicago), U.S. Presidential candidate Fred Thompson (coincidentally as President Grant) and Anna Paquin. All around, the acting is top notch, though Adam Beach, who was one of the real highlights in Flags of our Fathers (playing a frustrated American Indian living in a white world), steals the show here as a frustrated American Indian living in a white world. Unfortunately, Oscar-winning Paquin, who I still believe is a tour de force just waiting to be unleashed, appears to be here just to look pretty.

Overall, Wounded Knee is a well done, gritty and ultimately tragic tale, but it's hard not to compare this film to the HBO series "Deadwood", which was even grittier and darker than this. It's not that the subject matters of Wounded Knee and "Deadwood" are the same, but Wounded Knee is trying to look realistic and gritty, and it ends up looking second rate to a television show. The black-and-white flashbacks are what really killed for me, as they just don't look that professional.

Nevertheless, fans of the subject matter will find a strong drama in Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. The movie is now available on DVD.

Will Tony die on the series finale of The Sopranos?

The Sopranos ends tonight, and the big question is: will Tony live, or will Tony die? And if he dies, will that be the closure it needs, or will we have just lost one of the greatest characters in television history?

Personally, the show can find closure without killing Tony. Just like any movie can end with the bad guy dying and the protagonist living, The Sopranos can end with Phil getting whacked and Tony continuing on with his life as is. In fact, I believe this is the way it has to go: the show has always been about the hypocrisy of its characters, of human beings who live rather immoral lives. Killing Tony would be almost too cliche, and not true to the nature of the show.

Okay, I don't know what I'm saying, but I would love to see Tony lives. If Phil gets whacked and Tony lives, then I'll be just fine with that. Of course, in reality, the odds are that Tony dies. We'll just have to wait and see...

The Sopranos + Entourage = Happy Erik

Okay, so I watch too much television. In addition to watching nearly every major movie that is released in a given year, I subscribe to many television shows. I don't know how I do it and still manage to maintain a moderate social life. It probably helps I'm single, but anyway...

With Battlestar Galactica ending unexpectedly this last Sunday, I now have to look forward to The Sopranos and Entourage, both of which start April 8th on HBO. The Sopranos, in its final season for sure this time, hopefully will go out with a bang, and not a non-ending like it concluded on last season, or like Deadwood did. This is old news by now, but here's the Sopranos trailer.

Of course, I really can't wait to see what happens to Ari on Entourage, who could quite possibly be one of the greatest characters ever conceived by man. I am assuming he will return, but if he doesn't, I will be devastated!