Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee, Dances With Wolves, Hostiles, and this film are all about the same subject--the removal of Indians from the Western territories/states. Each one of these films tells the story from a different, yet true, perspective. Woman Walks Ahead shows clearly how ultra-conservatives can, and do, demonize anybody who doesn't agree with them. Ultra-liberals do the same thing, of course, and back in the NYC of this time period, where the female character played by Jessica Chastain hails from, there were plenty who didn't have a grasp of the situation out West. Chastain plays her part well--except for the fact that she can't keep a British accent though her character is supposed to be from England originally. Setting that aside, ready yourself for brutality comparable to Hostiles--and for a history lesson you won't forget.

What it's not: This is not a western movie, made up by White Hollywood to entertain you, showing you fights and "brave" cowboys.. A movie with interchangeable characters you forget about just as quickly as you finish your popcorn.What it is: This movie is about human beings. Mass murder. The systematic genocide. True parts of history that have been avoided to be told far too many times. Hope. Hopelessness. Mourning and fraud. Framed by a woman that against the "social" reasoning at that time decided to confront injustice. The actors, Chastain - Greyeyes - Rockwell, truly live up to the significance of their historic figures. You never see the roles, but the people who felt, lived, loved and faught for their ways of life. This movie touches you, affects you deeply in the core of your heart and won't leave any eye dry. A very honest movie that is one of a kind.

"Woman Walks Ahead" is a new American movie that premiered back in 2017 and runs for 100 minutes approximately. Director is 2-time Emmy nominee Susanna White and the script is by Oscar nominee Steven Knight, so a British co-production we have here. the star is Golden-Globe winning lead actress Jessica Chastain and she is joined by recent Oscar winner Sam Rockwell. The poster and (not so great) title make it clear already that this is a film about Indians with modern western elements, maybe a female-themed equivalent to Christian Bale's most recently released film. But back to this one here. Sadly, I was very unimpressed. Eventually, it comes down to nothing but another unrefined film on the subject that depicts Whites as bad guys and Indians as suffering (good) guys while offering almost no depth whatsoever. In terms of Chastain and the story and material, you could thing it is one of these films that are symbolic for quality roles for females in movies these, days, but I found it to be the exact opposite. There is nothing to her character that makes an impact beyond stereotypes and generic character writing unfortunately. Her looks make the impact, maybe the clothes too, but the character never does and moves way further behind the longer the film goes to a degree where she becomes almost insignificant eventually and the occasional scene of discrimination against her for how she is bonding with Sitting Bull is pretty ridiculous. The worst, however, is the rushed-in plot about her being scared of horses that is more on the side of making fun about people who actually do with how easy she approaches the horses later on in a very clumsy attempt to show her (mental) strength. Also the parts wheer we have virtually everybody drooling over her are not to helpful in terms of strong female characters. As for Sitting Bull, there isn't too much positive I can say either. Again, it's the looks that are working well, but that is it pretty much. The seemingly important scenes about the money for the drawing, the speeches to his peers and him getting closer to Weldon never make half the impact they are supposed to. The scene at the very end with the dancing circus horse was supposed to be powerful, but not even the words appearing on the screen afterward can make this one work. It is pretty ridiculous. The only somewhat positive thing I can say here is about Sam Rockwell. The way you never knew where his character was heading was nice and offered some suspense at least. He's clearly the MVP here and it's easy to see how his career has probably been peaking in the last 5 years, not just awards-wise. The plot with the idea at the end that what seems a victory for the Indians is the exact opposite wasn't too bad, but cannot make up for all the mediocrity and very weak parts before that. I just cannot give this movie a positive recommendation by any means. I think given the cast and the general plot idea, it is an extremely disappointing outcome we got here. Very much a missed opportunity and the miss wasn't even close. Even the cinematography is surprisingly bland given the locations where the film is set. Unless you really adore both Rockwell and Chastain as well as modern western movies, my suggestion is to watch something else instead. Certainly a thumbs-down I give this one we got here.

The main problem with "Woman Walks Ahead" is simple: it just isn't that great of a flick. Even at just over an hour and a half, it seems to move at a glacial pace, and none of the performances are noteworthy whatsoever. A problem nearly as big: perhaps I have this opinion because it was beaten to the exact same punch by the extraordinary "Hostiles".For a basic plot summary, "Woman Walks Ahead" tells the story of Catherine Weldon (Jessica Chastain), a widower who decides to leave her New York home for the Dakota prairie. The reason? She is a painter, and she wants to capture the personage of Sitting Bull (Michael Greyeyes), once the fearsome Native American warrior now turned potato farmer. Along the way, Catherine is caught up in a political battle over a treaty ratification, and spars with U.S. soldier Silas Groves (Sam Rockwell).Earlier this year (2018), "Hostiles" really set the standard for how to make a modern-age Western. Gone are the "cowboys vs. indians" westerns of the 60s, and rightfully so (that style had become tawdry and played out). Now, the admittedly few westerns that hit the big screen are about more oblique, socially-sensitive issues revolving around Native/White relationships. The "problem" here, of course, is that "Hostiles" set the bar so high that similarly-themed movies are going to have trouble clearing it.Thus, "Woman Walks Ahead" pales in comparison to that gripping, visceral film. Here, nothing important really seems to happen in terms of character interactions, performances, visuals, or anything else. The themes are there and all the right words are said, but nothing jumps off the screen in order to pull the viewer in. It all just kind of "happens" without much emotion or fanfare.I can't say I was ever outright bored by this film, but it came close at times. One thing is for sure: It never sucked me into the atmosphere it wanted to create like "Hostiles" did. I hate to compare two films so closely in this fashion, but it was a legitimate issue for me from beginning to end while watching "Woman Walks Ahead".