Entertainment Binge

By Isaac White.

Over the last year and change of my wonderful weekly missives to all of you, we’ve discussed some movies and TV series that focus on Onkwehonwe. Which makes sense, right? I’m Akwesasronon and I suspect most of you reading this are as well. So it’s natural to talk about Natives in movies this week as the Oscar awards were just presented. Not only do I think it’s expected that I’d talk about what transpired, but I sort of think it would be against my duty as a man who writes about film and TV every week.

As I’m sure you all know, Lily Gladstone (Blackfeet and Nimíipuu) was nominated for the Academy’s Best Actress Award. When I was younger my mind always wondered why they call it the academy. Of course, it’s the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. I must admit that I thought having that name odd, but as I got older, it made sense. After all, this is an art, and there is a science that goes into this.

No, I’m not only talking about sci-fi either. If you ever get a chance, you should listen to the podcast Smartless, with hosts Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett. They had Jon Favreau on their show, and I listened to it because, well, because I’m obsessed with movies and TV. Plus, Favreau has made some seriously great movies. I mean, he was the guy who opened the Marvel cinematic universe when he directed the first Iron Man in 2008. That movie is STILL my favorite Marvel flick.

Anyway, I believe most of us don’t think about the technical aspects of filmmaking. Or that the film industry has pioneered some technology that has changed the world, not only the magic world of film. While Jon Favreau was there, he talked about the methods of technology he utilized that were really new, ones that hadn’t been used. Check it out if you get the chance. It’s interesting to hear about those sorts of things. The stuff that you would never hear outside of insider shows like Smartless. By the way, Smartless is a great podcast; the hosts are hilarious and play off of each other so well. The banter is impressive, and because of their A-list Hollywood status, they bring incredible guests to the show.

Back to Ms. Gladstone. If you all remember, I had some criticisms of Killers of the Flower Moon, the film that earned her the nomination. Now, I must say that it was fantastic to see her win a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild (SAG) award alongside others. To me, it seemed that she was a shoo-in for the Oscar win. When I was reading about Oscar predictions (yes, I do that, too), it appeared she was the odds-on favorite.

After all, she was the first Native American woman to be nominated for Best Actress and Killers of the Flower Moon roundly applauded worldwide. So, it was with surprise and great disappointment that her name wasn’t announced as the award recipient. She handled it with grace, of course, and the night was a celebration that featured Native people. Seeing the Osage people singing and dancing for the world was a sight. I can’t imagine any Native watching it, either live or on tape, who wasn’t moved.

Our Osage family was on the world stage, representing us most memorably. It was beautiful, and I’ll never forget it - none of us will. Although it wasn’t Mohawks out there, I believe we can all take pride in the entire night – for Ms. Gladstone, for the Osage songwriter Scott George, who wrote Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People), which was nominated for Best Song by the Academy, and for all of the people performing.

I’m not going to play the “it’s because she’s Native, that’s why she didn’t win” card. Nothing proved to me that there was anything nefarious about why she didn’t win. What I will focus on is that she was nominated – that she was THIS close. It’s a sign to me that Native people are truly on everyone’s radar. There’s no way anyone can deny that now, and we’re all the better for it.

Her performance and recognition for it will help so many other Native actors. Just as Reservation Dogs opened non-Native eyes to what life is like on the Rez, Gladstone’s putting her talent on display in that way was a huge move forward for all of us. I know it may seem like I’m overdoing this, but I hope you consider that it is a big deal for more than just movies as well.

Killers of the Flower Moon is a tragic story of the Osage people being taken advantage of, abused, and murdered. Yes, it was in the early 1920s, and you can expect disregard for the people at that time. But you and I know that there is still a large portion of the population who have never met a Native person in their life. Indeed, I have not had close relationships with Onkwehonwe.

So this recounting of the horrendous situation that happened to the Osage in a film that was made by Martin Scorsese, possibly the most excellent director of all time, and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, who I believe is the biggest movie star today, now I’m not saying that a movie is the best way for people on the outside even to consider who we are or what we go through. That being said, I believe anything that brings attention to the trials and tribulations Natives still go through today.

I think anything that spurs outsiders to think about Natives and consider what life is like for us is a good thing. So, for that, I’m grateful to Lily Gladstone. I’m grateful for the Natives who represented all Onkwehonwe so beautifully and proudly. I just want to convey my joy that we were a part of this, even if we technically weren’t. Any Native doing great things helps bring all of us up with them.

Now, let’s get into the new things I viewed. Tijuana Jackson: Purpose Over Prison is a 2018 movie written and directed by Romany Malco (40 Year Old Virgin), who is also the lead actor. The movie centers around a man recently released from prison named Tijuana Jackson. Tijuana has been in and out of prison many times. This time, though, a documentary crew follows him around. The director of the fictional documentary is a film student tasked with creating a 10-minute documentary.

She settles upon Tijuana, who wants to become a motivational speaker/life coach upon his release from this latest stint in the joint. You may seem doubtful about the quality of a mockumentary comedy featuring an ex-con who wants to be a life coach. Don’t judge too quickly.

This movie is fun; I’m not kidding you. A mockumentary isn’t an original idea. One that features a man with multiple prison stays and hopes of becoming a life coach certainly is original. And hilarious. The interplay between the characters is excellent. Tijuana talks like a macho man, but he’s really caring; he just isn’t comfortable showing it to the world. The relationship between him and his nephew Eric is heartwarming. If I used the actual language from the movie, you would say I’m out of my tree, but I promise it will genuinely uplift me.

Give it a chance. If you don’t like it after 25 minutes, turn it off and write me an angry letter. Maybe not that, but feel free to curse my recommendation. Tijuana Jackson is fun and much more uplifting than you would expect hearing the premise.

This next one is a movie I have been waiting to see since I heard about it. Ricky Stanicky is a 2024 movie that is an Amazon MGM project. First of all, one of the reasons I wanted to see it so badly is because the director is Peter Farrelly. Yes, the same Peter Farrelly who has directed some of the funniest movies ever. Dumb and Dumber, There’s Something About Mary, and one of the most hilarious movies ever made – Kingpin. They’re all classics, but Kingpin is just a bit ahead of the others.

The movie stars Zac Efron, Andrew Santino, and Jermaine Fowler as three best friends from childhood who create a person named Ricky Stanicky to help them get out of trouble or to get out of doing things they don’t want to do. This movie is straightforward.

There are some twists and turns. The biggest (literally and figuratively) is when they get in a jam with one of their lies and need to produce a real-life Ricky Stanicky. They find their man in an alcoholic behemoth (Jon Cena) who claims to be an actor who can handle the job. How they got to that point is quite interesting, and what Cena does for a job is something I can’t say here. But it’s funny.

I like this movie a lot. It’s funny as heck, which should be expected from a film by one of the Farrelly brothers. But I want to praise Jon Cena here. I can’t tell you just how hilarious he is in this movie. Now, if you’ve seen Blockers, then you have an idea about how well he performs in a comedic role. But he shines in this as well.

He’s the star of this movie. The rest of the cast is incredible, don’t get me wrong, but Cena is incredibly electric. Cena has that thing—the thing you can’t define immediately.

I have one complaint about this movie: the three knuckleheads lie constantly to their family and friends to get whatever they want. I can’t imagine feeling okay with that, and no, I’m not saying that, hoping that MY family will read this and go, “Aw, that’s so nice.” But it’s necessary for the movie to work, and it works very well.

Check out Ricky Stanicky; It’s so worth it; the laughs are frequent.

I gotta go.

Thanks for reading, and until next week…..