Deductionreviews27 comments

Right now, the disappearance and death of "vanlife" personality Gabby Petito at the alleged hands of her boyfriend is gripping the nation and the world on a scale so pervasive that it's caused a kind of specific backlash of its own as people move to Thousands of people are waking up each year who are missing or the victims of unsolved murders, who are not coincidentally beautiful white girls from affluent backgrounds, particularly Native American women, who are missing, murdered or otherwise exploited at an alarming rate in the United States .
Texas-based screenwriter-director Taylor Sheridan has been generating a lot of buzz lately, especially in the country music world since his television seriesGelbsteinon the Paramount Network offers so many great featuresindependent country artists on its soundtrack, not to mention that Sheridan is in the process of launching a second prequel series to the show, starring Tim McGraw and Faith Hill1883. The great success ofGelbsteinhas helped put artists like Colter Wall and Whiskey Myers on the national map.
Previously, Sheridan was also a screenwriter for the drug cartel filmSicarioin 2015, which won numerous awards and was a box office hit, followed by 2016hell or floodwho just likeGelbstein, featured a killer soundtrack starring Colter Wall, Scott H. Biram, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Townes Van Zandt, Waylon Jennings and more.hell or floodwas also nominated for four Oscars, including Best Screenplay and Best Picture.
But the savage success Taylor Sheridan has had of late has overshadowed what was also included as the third film in the screenwriter's neo-western trilogy about "the modern American frontier."Sicarioandhell or flood. CalledWindflussand released in 2017, it didn't quite get the critical acclaim ofhell or flood, or have the commercial success ofSicario, but it's an important contribution to Taylor Sheridan's canon nonetheless, and one worth revisiting in the wake of the disappearance and death of Gabby Petito.
Taylor Sheridan was particularly inspired to write the film because of the thousands of stories about Indigenous women being raped, exploited, and murdered on and off Indian reservations, with little or no outside attention given to the issue. The film is about a murder on the Wind River Indian reservation in Wyoming, which an FBI agent (Elizabeth Olsen), a fish and wildlife finder (Jeremy Renner) and the tribal police chief (Graham Greene) work to solve.
Unlike some of Taylor Sheridan's other works, the film isn't just a neo-western-style shoot 'em up. It's a thoughtful and nuanced approach to the subject, with just enough action to keep you intrigued, and well played by all parties. Taylor Sheridan also directed the film.
Windflussis also currently available on Netflix.
The disappearance and death of Gabby Petito is a fond reminder of all the people who disappear or are murdered each year with no answers for the family. As much as we commend Taylor Sheridan for his efforts to revitalize Western history in a modern context and shine a spotlight on cool country artists through his soundtracks, as much as he strives to spark renewed interest in the disappearance and deaths of so many Native American women as should are not overlooked, nor are the thousands of missing persons cases each year.
© 2022 Saving Country Music
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Colter Wand,Elisabeth Olsen,Gabi Petito,Graham Green,hell or flood,Jeremy Renner,Ray Wylie Hubbard,Scott H. Biram,Sicario,Taylor Sheridan,Cities Van Zandt,Waylon Jennings,Whisky Myers,Windfluss,Gelbstein
27 comments
Nicholas
25. September 2021@11:33 amA fantastic movie! The year I saw it in 2017 it was my favorite movie of the year and it's still one of the best movies I've seen in the last 5 years. Sheridan is a very talented director.
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Hall ventilator01
25. September 2021@12:06 p.mEverything Sheridan touches turns to gold.
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Jake Schneider
25. September 2021@12:33 p.mIf Yellowstone was anything like this movie, I would have seen more than a few episodes.
(Video) Why We Watch Realistic Drama7+
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Steve
25. September 2021@ 2:58 p.mI'm with you. love the movie
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Susan Osgood
26. September 2021@12:04 p.mIf you are patient, the story is amazing - so much detail. It all makes crazy sense after season three. love the writing!
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618Bachratte
25. September 2021@ 1:09 p.mThe story sounds like it resonates with some elements of Longmire's plot. Will check.
"1883" by the way? For that, some Colter tracks should be plug-n-play capable.
On the new release front, Taylor McCall's album is interesting.
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Scotty J
25. September 2021@ 2:36 p.mYes, it has a very Longmire feel to it and the character of Jeremy Renner is very Walt-like.
It's a very good film, but it must have been very difficult to make. snow, snow, snow!
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Scotty J
25. September 2021@ 2:38 p.mPreviously, Yellowstone was always shot in the summer and I think they're shooting almost exclusively in Montana now.
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Tex-Hex
25. September 2021@ 1:23 p.m(Video) Wind River best shootout scene 2017Great film and I immediately thought of it during this whole situation with Gabby Petito. Taylor Sheridan is an excellent neo-western storyteller, but his films are better than his TV show(s) in my opinion. I think Yellowstone plays like cheap melodrama, but paired with a great director and/or cinematographer, his films are unbeatable. I often rewatch Hell or Highwater and Sicario – modern classics.
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Mike Basel
25. September 2021@ 2:21 p.mBelieve it or not, in the last two weeks I've been re-watching all three of these films. I first saw Sicario and Hell Or High Water during their first theatrical run. All three films not only impressed me the first time I watched them, they were at least as impressive on repeated viewings. I look forward to Taylor Sheridan's next theatrical offering and I hope there will be a Western twist too.
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Murph
25. September 2021@ 4:43 p.mTangentially, also check out the Reservation Dogs series, which tells a story about life on an Oklahoma Indian reservation with humor, intelligence and an amazing soundtrack that includes great country music!
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terrific
26. September 2021@12:20 p.mThere's a whole under-the-radar Indian country music scene in various parts of the country. They get less attention from non-Indians because they don't tend to do music videos or do much social media and of course aren't on the Nashville radar, but it's a regional live music scene in a number of western states.
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Tex-Hex
27. September 2021@9:23 amSecondly. Great show, great soundtrack. I saw Freddy Fender's "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" in a recent episode. Some scenes in the series are set in some local honky-tonks. Real places or not, I'm not sure, but it helps get the point across that country music isn't an all-white genre or pastime. It has been a part of rural communities for decades, regardless of race. I think conveying reality in popular culture is important, especially given so much malicious misinformation by the left-leaning news media.
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Jane
29. September 2021@4:07 amThere are no reservations for Oklahoma. All of eastern Oklahoma is Indian Nation.
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RD
25. September 2021@6:30 p.mIf I were that blonde girl, I would wear a winter hat.
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(Video) ELIZABETH OLSEN INTERVIEW gets CRAZY with JEREMY RENNER for WIND RIVERanswer
Deduction
26. September 2021@ 10:33 amThe initial greenhorn nature of the Elizabeth Olsen character, and her maturing and surprising strength as the film unfolds, is one of the best parts of the film, including how she shows up undressed for the occasion.
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Rob Lee
25. September 2021@ 8:21 p.mGreat movie. I just rewatched it on my honeymoon since it's back on Netflix. Big fan of Sheridan's films. Heard mixed results about Yellowstone. I'm glad what it does for good music.
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Raubblog
25. September 2021@ 10:46 p.mWIND RIVER was okay. It's not on the level of SICARIO and HELL OR HIGH WATER. Maybe it was because it was Sheridan's first attempt at directing.
On a side note, Sheridan played my favorite character in Sons of Anarchy until his character was killed.
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Jo
26. September 2021@6:51 amWind River is the absolute best drama I've ever seen. Jeremy Renner was born to be this character and I would love for Wind River to become a franchise like some of the numerous action movies that grow old after number 4! Wind River delves into the actual everyday heartbreak of losing a child. So please, Mr. Sheridan, if you can, keep writing and giving us more of what matters most!!
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Shastawels
26. September 2021@11:01 amSpeaking of neo-westerns and Graham Greene, I've always liked the film Thunderheart. It has some similar elements to Wind River (with obvious differences). It certainly feels like a "lost" film worth dusting off.
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Raubblog
26. September 2021@ 5:07 p.mWIND RIVER also reminded me a lot of THUNDERHEART.
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(Video) The Art of the Frontier Trilogyanswer
Wendy Stevenson
26. September 2021@ 7:38 p.mPlease let me know when it will air and on which channel.
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bear fat
26. September 2021@8:16 p.mI live in central MN and we had 2 banks open in our town in the past year, can't stop and think of the line in hell or high water after one of the banks was robbed and the grumpy old man says the banks have been us since Years of kidding....never a truer statement in a movie!
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bear fat
26. September 2021@8:18 p.mPeople Magazine editors need to see that Wind River has never understood why one case gets so much attention over another.
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Raubblog
27. September 2021@9:10 amThis issue is something I have complained about for years. I'm not sufficiently "awake" but it doesn't take "awakeness" to recognize certain inadequacies and injustices in different areas of society. Whenever the missing person is a white woman or a little girl — especially a blonde — media attention goes through the roof. Is it because they knew who reads and watches this type of thing and who pays close attention to the coverage? Who are the biggest ID fans? Who are the biggest consumers of mystery fiction and non-fiction? Yes. white women. If it's relative to white women, white women will make it their primary concern. Like pumpkin spice time. That's not necessarily the white women's fault. It's just their nature, and they have the money and influence to make their voices heard. The media only tends to do so. It's still not right. It just is. Nobody cares enough when black kids or black women or Native American or Hispanic women or children go missing, and people seem to care TOO much when white girls or women go missing.
I remember here in Jacksonville in the late 90's a little girl named Maddie Clifton went missing. They searched for her for days. It was in the news 24/7. It made national headlines. It turned out that her neighbor - a 12-year-old boy - beat her to death with a baseball bat and hid her in his bed frame. He had been looking for her body and pretended not to know. After her body was recovered, buried and buried, my girlfriend at the time (a white woman) wanted to go to the burial site. That was just days after her funeral. I was uncomfortable with the thought, but you know, sometimes a guy has to do what his girl wants. There were family members and friends of the girl. I felt like a voyeur. I felt dirty like I didn't belong. I didn't know this sweet, sweet little girl. Neither did my friend, but she grieved for her as if she were her own sister. white women. you have to love her
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Capn
28. September 2021@ 8:21 amThe final scene in this film, the conversation pictured above, is worth watching the rest of the film. It's more original than Sicario or Hell or High Water; definitely a unique film worth watching. I also think "Diamonds and Gasoline" comes up at one point.
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Robin
18 January 2022@ 8:55 amHeartbreaking and devastating! What happens to this beautiful young couple is hard to watch. I love the movie very much. Everyone is talented and you can tell they do their best for the roles they play. Also wonderfully staged. I cry when I think of the loss... and how cruel and needless it was.
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FAQs
Is Wind River worth watching? ›
It is a very beautifully shot, well acted and distressing crime drama. The vast landscape becomes more than a vivid backdrop, it becomes a character in the film. Wind River is able to showcase Sheridans directing and storytelling strengths.
What true events inspired the movie Wind River? ›Sheridan has said that he wrote the film to raise awareness of the issue of the high number of Indigenous women who are raped and murdered, both on and off reservations. Wind River premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and was released in the United States on August 4, 2017.
What happens at the end of Wind River? ›FBI Agent Jane Banner arrives to investigate what seems to be a homicide. The following day, Natalie's father, Martin, a long-time friend of Lambert, tells him that Natalie had a boyfriend whom he didn't know anything about. Natalie's autopsy reveals death from pulmonary hemorrhage caused by inhaling sub-zero air.
What is Wind River known for? ›Overview. The Wind Rivers contain more than 40 named peaks over 13,000 feet, including Gannett Peak, Wyoming's highest at 13,804 feet. Seven of the largest glaciers in the Rocky Mountains are found here, including the single largest glacier in the American Rockies.
Is Wind River like Yellowstone? ›As directed by Taylor Sheridan, co-creator (and sometimes director) of Yellowstone, this gritty tale shares many of the same characteristics as its TV counterpart, particularly in its views of Native American culture and the rugged wilderness — except rather than fighting over the vast plains of Montana, characters ...
Why is it called Wind River? ›The river was named for the prevailing strong northwesterly wind currents that sweep its valley between the Shoshone and Wind River mountain ranges.
Who is the killer in the movie Wind River? ›Pete Mickens is the main antagonist in the 2017 crime drama film Wind River.
What do Native Americans think of Wind River? ›The film received widespread positive reviews. Indian Country Today Media Network (ICTMN) called it “gripping, realistic and beautifully-crafted”. They praised the film for its use of at least 10 Natives as cast and crew, including Graham Greene, Gil Birmingham, and Tantoo Cardinal.
Is Wind River a trilogy? ›Lionsgate assembles the American Frontier Trilogy of Taylor Sheridan's written and/or directed films Sicario, Wind River, and Hell or High Water.
What should I watch after Howl's Moving Castle? ›- Bubble (2022) Image via Netflix. ...
- Stardust (2007) ...
- Spirited Away (2001) ...
- Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (2018) ...
- Labyrinth (1986) ...
- To the Forest of Firefly Lights (2011) ...
- Big Fish (2003) ...
- Your Name (2016)
Will there be a sequel to Wind River? ›
Taylor Sheridan's neo-Western crime drama Wind River is getting a sequel. It's called Wind River: The Next Chapter, and it's set to begin production in January 2023. Martin Sensmeier, who plays Sam in Yellowstone prequel series 1883, will return as Wind River native Chip Hanson.
What did the ending of the wind mean? ›The end of The Wind discloses that Lizzy was overcome with rage and jealousy coupled with prairie madness. Unable to bear that her husband might be sleeping with Emma, she shoots her in the face with her gun. Isaac and Gideon assume that Emma committed suicide.
Can your lungs freeze Wind River? ›It's not possible to freeze the lungs by running, even in extreme cold. Air gets heated by the nose and throat before it reaches the lungs, and the lungs themselves are continually heated by the circulating blood.
Is Wind River a true story? ›SIMON: And I gather this film is based on an actual story. SHERIDAN: It's based on thousands of actual stories just like it. SIMON: How so? SHERIDAN: This issue with sexual assault against women on the reservation - I mean, it's existed since the inception of a reservation system.
What is the theme of Wind River? ›The film tackles the theme of grief and how to deal with it (while recognizing that everyone deals with it differently).
Can you visit Wind River Reservation? ›Wind River Reservation
You can experience powwows and museums to learn more about the local culture, or recreate on thousands of acres of vast, unspoiled reservation lands (with a special permit).
What Parents Need to Know. Parents need to know that Wind River is a very violent crime/murder story set on a Native American reservation in Wyoming. There's a brutal rape scene, plus fighting, beating, and bludgeoning, lots of guns/shooting, gory dead bodies, and plenty of blood. A wolf is also shot and killed.
What should I watch instead of Yellowstone? ›- Deadwood (2004) Trailer. tv-ma 3 Seasons. Genre Western, Crime, Drama. ...
- Justified (2010) Trailer. tv-ma 6 Seasons. Genre Crime, Drama. ...
- Mayor of Kingstown (2021) Trailer. tv-ma 2 Seasons. Genre Drama, Crime. ...
- Succession (2018) Trailer. tv-ma 4 Seasons. ...
- The Sopranos (1999) Trailer. tv-ma 6 Seasons.
1883 is a prequel series to Yellowstone which explores the origin of the Dutton family. The story of 1883 is set about 125 years before Yellowstone and takes us back to where and when the Duttons started their legacy.
How many actors from Yellowstone are in Wind River? ›Other future Yellowstone actors who appear in Wind River include Hugh Dillon, Ian Bohen, Martin Sensmeier and James Jordan. Wind River spent some time in the Top 5 on Netflix in 2021, years after its initial release.
Are there grizzly bears in the Wind River Range? ›
Grizzly bear 788 is one of many subadult males to inhabit the Wind River Range area. Grizzly 788 was first captured on August 13, 2014 at Bull Lake Creek on the Wind River Indian Reservation.
Who owns Wind River? ›Wind River Systems
How deep is the Wind River? ›The scenic route offers views of the canyon and landmark natural structures like the Chimney Rock. The canyon is at times as much as 2,500 feet (760 m) feet deep.
Who was the other body found in Wind River? ›While arresting Chip, Corey sees snowmobile trails going up the hill from the house and goes to track them along with Jane. Up the hill they find the body of Matt Rayburn, who was Natalie's Boyfriend, being eaten and chewed on by birds, half buried in the snow.
Did one of the Olsen twins play in Wind River? ›Elizabeth Olsen does double duty in 'Wind River' and 'Ingrid Goes West'
What is the plot of Wind River? ›Wind – in Navajo language – is most commonly referred to as nilch'i.
What is considered disrespectful in Native American culture? ›Avoid sayings that diminish or disparage Native culture.
As mentioned above, don't say things like “let's have a pow wow,” “lowest person on the totem pole,” “too many chiefs, not enough Indians,” “Indian giver,” “circle the wagons,” etc. These phrases are disrespectful, and we still use them every day.
1. Native Americans spoke more than 300 languages. North America was home to a huge number of spoken languages prior to colonization: more than 300, with as many as 500 spoken across the continent. However, many of these languages have disappeared as a result of assimilation policies by the government.
Is River worth watching? ›August 2, 2021 | Rating: 3.5/5 | Full Review… River is one of those offbeat, magical series that comes along occasionally, bursting with possibility, whose leading character is in some ways the best and worst of us, whom we immediately recognise. River is a dazzling feat of high-wire writing without a safety net.
Is Wind River a slow movie? ›
Wind River is a slow burn sort of movie. As a neo-Western you get plenty of men and women trying to save face by not speaking or showing emotion.
Is Virgin River a good series to watch? ›Inspiring sense of community, beautiful scenic backdrops and a great cast, make Virgin River a firm comfort watch, and a show I would watch on repeat.
How difficult is the Wind River High route? ›Get to know this 103.8-mile point-to-point trail near Dubois, Wyoming. Generally considered a challenging route, it takes an average of 49 h 18 min to complete. This trail is great for backpacking, camping, and hiking, and it's unlikely you'll encounter many other people while exploring.
Why river is important in human life? ›Humans use rivers for irrigation in agriculture, for drinking water, for transportation, to produce electricity through hydroelectric dams, and for leisure activities like swimming and boating.
Is the river important to human? ›Rivers provide important benefits—called ecosystem services—that impact our day-to-day lives. They provide drinking water, irrigation, transportation, and more. They also provide habitat for important fish species.
Does river have an ending? ›The end of a river is its mouth, or delta. At a river's delta, the land flattens out and the water loses speed, spreading into a fan shape. Usually this happens when the river meets an ocean, lake, or wetland.
Who was the killer in Wind River? ›Pete Mickens is the main antagonist in the 2017 crime drama film Wind River. He is a particularly vulgar crew member of the security team. He is portrayed by James Jordan.
What's so great about Virgin River? ›It's cosy, and homely, and despite occasional attempts at scandal, makes Call The Midwife look edgy. That said, it's endlessly charming. A Hallmark movie with soul, Virgin River is perfectly comfortable in its own skin, which is perhaps why it's developed such a dedicated following.
Why do people like Virgin River so much? ›Virgin River itself is aspirational and comforting as a place. The show is unashamedly aimed at fans of romance, as well as the readers of Robyn Carr's book series, and not afraid of throwing in darker storylines.
Will Virgin River have a 4th series? ›In mid-May, Netflix confirmed the release date for Virgin River season 4: July 20, 2022. The description for the new season, courtesy of Netflix: "Despite not knowing whether her baby belongs to her deceased husband, Mark, or Jack, [Mel] has a sense of optimism.