I'll assume most of the negative reviews are from non-Natives who still just don't "get it." This is a film that was written, produced, and directed by a Native American woman, which is a rarity in Hollywood, and I hope it expands opportunities for other Indigenous-created projects in the future.

It doesn't perpetuate stereotypes as some have claimed on here. It paints an extremely accurate picture of some of Indian Country today, with how colonialism still affects reservations and the people forced there for generations. We have a flawed Indigenous woman as a lead character-an Auntie no less-and we can feel the pain of her past actions and how they've affected her current life. It's widely relatable as many of us regret some aspects of our past and have to deal with the ongoing repercussions for said actions. The MMIP epidemic is handled with caution and love, and the way it's portrayed is a reality for so many children raised by single moms. It's the aunties who must step up in those situations while dealing with the possible death of their own sibling.

I liked the interactions between the white paternal side of the family and the teenage Native daughter. We see both sides, a cultural ignorance from the white step grandma that likens the powwow and dancing to theatre and costumes before we see her try to make up for her transgression by offering the granddaughter some ballet shoes, ensuring the granddaughter that ballet would never replace powwow dancing but could be an avenue to explore in her new living situation.

The ending feels abrupt to non-Natives too used to Eurocentric storytelling and the hero's journey. This is a Native story through and through, and it's definitely evident with the ending that doesn't wrap the story with a Disney-esque red bow. The daughter makes it to the powwow to connect with her people, with the ancestors, and does not find out on screen that her mother has been murdered and dumped in a nearby lake. The auntie is made aware and must slowly process this horrific news but also be there for her niece and dances alongside her in a beautiful way. We know this isn't the end of their journey, only the end of a phase of it, and the beginning of a new chapter that will be filled with loss, despair, grief, etc. But for now, she's dancing.

Ever since her sister had gone missing, Jax (Lily Gladstone) has been caring for her niece Roki (Isabel Deroy-Olson). They scrap by as they prepare for the upcoming powwow. Roki hopes to find her mother there while Jax desperately searches. There is little help from the authorities. With her criminal past, Jax is seen as unfit to be Roki's guardian. She loses Roki to her father Frank (Shea Whigham) and his white wife Nancy (Audrey Wasilewski).

This has good reality to this modern day native American culture. The big name here is Lily Gladstone although Isabel Deroy-Olson is a great new discovery. It's a road trip. It's a mystery. It's a fugitive movie. It's a cultural exploration. It's family trauma. It's great.