New film 'Woman Walks Ahead' explores final days of Sitting Bill at Standing Rock
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
A new film explores the final days of Sitting Bull in 1890 although the primary character is a non-Indian woman who faced criticism for associating with the revered Lakota leader.
Woman Walks Ahead stars Michael Greyeyes, who is Cree from Canada, as Sitting Bill. The film otherwise features only one other Native actor -- Chaske Spencer, who is a citizen of the Fort Peck Tribes -- in a significant role, according to a review by Variety.
The "Woman" in the title refers to Caroline Weldon, who is portrayed in the film by Jessica Chastain. Weldon was involved in Indian rights activism in the late 1800s and eventually
traveled to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, where she was vilified by local non-Indians and federal officials for working with Sitting Bill as he resisted attempts to reduce the Sioux Nation's land base.
According to the book Woman Walking Ahead, Weldon became known on the reservation as Toka heya mani win, which means "Woman Walking Ahead" in Lakota. She painted four portraits of the famed leader, an action depicted in the film as the reason she went to Standing Rock.
