Fancy Dance

Erica Tremblay's direction in this film is both powerful and emotional, shedding light on the clash between traditional laws and bureaucratic forces. The special connection that aboriginal people have with their families and laws is portrayed vividly. However, the unnecessary inclusion of a lesbian subplot seems to be part of a larger agenda for cultural manipulation.

Lily Gladstone's ability to film this project during breaks from "Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)" showcases her dedication to her craft. The film's slow build-up sets the tone effectively, but it falters in the middle by losing its grip on the audience. Nevertheless, the final act brings everything together beautifully, especially in depicting the special relationship between the aunt and her niece.

While "Fancy Dance" may not be a cheerful tale, it is undeniably significant. For those seeking a well-acted and compelling drama, this film comes highly recommended.

Fancy Dance starring Lily Gladstone and Isabel Deroy-Olson is now streaming on AppleTV+. From director Erica Tremblay, this drama follows Jax (Gladstone) as she struggles to maintain guardianship of her niece Roki (Deroy-Olson) while also trying to find her sister who has gone missing.

This was an emotional and gripping drama that was beautifully acted by both Gladstone and Deroy-Olson. More impressive still, Gladstone filmed this movie at the same time as Killers of the Flower Moon which she earned her first Oscar nomination for. I enjoyed this movie for how fearless and unapologetic the writing is. Although this is not a true story, it has a true story kind of feel and I am sure that stories such as this one are sadly not uncommon.

Fancy Dance is not a happy story, but it is an important one. If you want to see a good drama which features great acting and storytelling, I recommend checking this out. If you want to be in a good mood afterwards, I suggest keep strolling.

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.

I was really emotionally invested throughout this film, thanks to a very well thought-out, impactful script and a rock-solid, anchoring performance by the fantastic Lilly Gladstone.

Don't go into this film expecting to find a cheery or even hopeful exploration of Native American identity and family connections - this is at times an exceedingly bleak and nasty examination of barely hidden racism, misogyny and harsh reality in modern day middle America.

It's a fantastic story backed up by realistic and interesting characters with a very well done script.

But I do have to state quite a significant negative of the film in my own personal opinion - a very sudden and unexpected ending. I was invested in these characters and their situation. I wanted to see the story resolved... But then it just went off. It really did feel that they just decided to cut out the last five or ten minutes of the film. It was a surprisingly shocking and unsatisfying way to end this particular story. Show the audience the consequences at least in a very minor way but don't leave it completely up to the imagination, that's just not the type of film this was.

This movie is pretty forgettable. The story is a tad uninteresting but it isn't necessarily bad. The character dynamics and interactions are solid for the most part. The directing gets the job done but there's nothing memorable or unique about it. The elements of Native American culture are cool at certain points but I think the movie needed to dive into it more. The ending is nice in theory but it feels unearned. I think the biggest problem with this movie is that there's a solid emotional story somewhere in there but the film is too bland to get any sort of reaction. The main character makes a lot of questionable choices to put it lightly and instead of exploring the nuance that's there in the character, the film just brushes past it. This is pretty frustrating when Lily Gladstone would've done a great job with some more complex scenes.