Wind River (2017)

Directed by: Taylor Sheridan | 111 minutes | crime, drama, thriller | Actors: Elizabeth Olsen, Jeremy Renner, Kelsey Asbille, Julia Jones, Teo Briones, Apesanahkwat, Graham Greene, Tantoo Cardinal, Eric Lange, Gil Birmingham, Althea Sam, Tokala Clifford, Martin Sensmeier, Tyler Laracca, Shayne J. Cullen, Austin R Grant, Ian Bohen, Hugh Dillon, Matthew Del Negro, James Jordan

If one day you disappear without a trace and are later found lifeless, you better be female, young and white. Anyone who does not fit into that box is given less priority by the investigative units. At least in the United States it is. Writer and director Taylor Sheridan was shocked when during the filming of ‘Wind River’ (2017) some leaders of the Shoshone Indian tribe told him that at that time, out of a population of only 6,000 people, there were 12 unsolved murders of young women. in the reserve. The tribes had been stripped of the right to arrest and bring to justice non-Indian criminals in the late 1970s, even if their criminal activities had taken place on an Indian reservation. If both victim and perpetrator are from outside the tribe, the arrest may only be made by a county or state officer, and if the victim is Indian but the perpetrator is not, only a federally certified agent may make the arrest. If the opposite is the case, a sheriff from the tribe may make the arrest, but the case must still go through the federal court. Because of so many snags, it is impossible for the Native Americans to get the right people under lock and key. Many criminals get away with their crimes because of this. It is high time for Sheridan to draw attention to this crooked situation.

From the first scene of ‘Wind River’ we are immediately on the edge of our seats: on a penniless reservation in frigid Wyoming, we see a young girl running across the snowfields. Who is she running from? Not much later, Cory Lambert (Jeremy Renner), who as an employee of the organization is engaged in controlling and preserving nature and in search of the big cats that prey on the cattle, discovers the lifeless body of the girl. She – eighteen-year-old Nathalie Hansen (Kelsey Chow) – is found to have been raped and murdered. It doesn’t take long for local authorities to get involved. The FBI, in the person of Jane Banner (Elizabeth Olsen), comes in a fat car from Las Vegas to Wyoming to take a look. She is like a fish out of water in the inhospitable snow landscape and has no idea how to communicate with the locals. But luckily Cory is there to help her. For though they differ as night and day from each other, yet they are condemned to each other to bring this matter to a successful conclusion. The murdered girl’s parents (Gil Birmingham and Tantoo Cardinal) have no idea who might be behind their daughter’s murder. Nathalie’s brother Chip (Martin Sensmeier) turns out not to be such a sweetheart; he is a drug addict and the leader of a gang that terrorizes the reservation. He just might lead Cory and Jane to the right culprit…

Sheridan – an actor by birth – is the screenwriter of ‘Sicario’ (2015) and ‘Hell or High Water’ (2016), two films that together with ‘Wind River’ make up his American Frontier trilogy; dynamic, modern westerns that do not shy away from heavy action and violence, but also provide sharp insights into pressing social issues in the US. ‘Wind River’ is only his second film as a director; nevertheless, there is hardly any uncertainty. Sheridan draws his audience directly into the story, especially with the confrontational, grueling and harsh conditions in which the Native Americans live, and the limited opportunities they have to escape from this situation. He also creates interesting characters. It turns out that Cory, who is outwardly sober and rock solid and always tries to do the right thing, has a bad past. His own daughter was once similar to Nathalie Hanson, and the two girls were friends. The aftermath of that terrible event cost him his marriage. Renner is perfect for this role; especially the heartbreaking scene in which he tells his personal history to Jane, is impressive. Sheridan is undoubtedly a fan of the work of Sam Peckinpah and Quentin Tarantino, because especially towards the end of ‘Wind River’ he gives more than a nod to both filmmakers and loses sight of his own craft. Although well executed, it is a minor slip in an otherwise flawless script. In terms of directing, Sheridan is also on the right track, although ‘Wind River’ – the only film he directed himself – is the least of his ‘American Frontier’ trilogy (‘Sicario’ was directed by Denis Villeneuve and ‘Hell or High Water’ by David Mackenzie), because the other two are just a bit more balanced.

‘Wind River’ is a fine piece of writing, a thrilling mystery with complex characters, rousing action and a powerful social undertone. We’ve rarely seen Jeremy Renner come out so well and Taylor Sheridan is a man we’ll be watching closely for years to come!