Everyone deserves proper representation in the media. To have their own voice heard rather than be spoken for like the insensitive Adam Sandler Western parody Ridiculous 6. The film industry is one of the best places to be heard, to tell a story that everyone will listen to. Whether it’s a story about a family struggling on their reservation or the story of the Golden Spruce, Indigenous communities all over North America have stories worth listening to. This brings us to the genre of Indigenous movies.

Update October 26, 2023: This article has been updated with more information and material in honor of the release of Killers of the Flower Moon and the discussion around Indigenous culture represented on screen.

Indigenous films are a genre all their own, with a focus not only on Indigenous representation but also on the perspective and expression of cultural values. The stories they tell may not resonate with general audiences, with different values and traditions that most don’t understand, so many Indigenous films often go unappreciated. However, the fight for equitable opportunity and representation in film means recognizing great stories and filmmakers. Worth noting is not all of the films on this list are from Indigenous filmmakers, even though they focus on Indigenous cultures, and while that is great for more representation in terms of stories, there is a long way to go in terms of proper representation behind the camera. However, these movies are ones that focus on indigenous cultures from North America that deserve everyone’s attention.

9 Windtalkers (2002)

Windtalkers follows Marine Enders (Nicholas Cage) who is tasked with protecting Ben Yahzee (Adam Beach), a Navajo code talker. The story is based on the real Navajo code-talkers used by the Marines during WWII. Windtalkers is masterfully done in the sense that it explores how Indigenous soldiers differed from white soldiers in both beliefs and practices. W

hile, at times relations between the code-talkers and the Marines were strained, the film displayed them reaching an understanding and mutual respect for one another. Windtalkers was not well-received at the box office, and director John Woo stated, “they wanted a John Wayne movie.” While Windtalkers is not a typical war movie, it’s a refreshing change.

Windtalkers can be streamed on HBO Max.

8 Dance Me Outside (1994)

When Silas, Frank and their girlfriends find the body of a murdered woman they know, her white killer receives a two-year sentence for his actions. After receiving the news, the boys plot revenge against the killer. The film examines the harsh injustices that the Indigenous people face on a regular basis and the reality of white privilege. Yet another film starring Adam Beach on this list, Dance Me Outside is a serious drama that allows the Indigenous community to shed light on the systemic racism within the legal system.

Before its time, Dance Me Outside was reminiscent of the modern movement for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, a public inquiry into the outstanding statistics of Indigenous women and girls representing 16% of female homicides in Canada.

Dance Me Outside can be streamed on Apple TV for rental.

7 Songs My Brother Taught Me (2015)

When Johnny and Jashaun’s father dies, Johnny wishes to leave his life on the reservation for LA, but fears leaving his sister behind. Songs My Brother Taught Me shows the realities of life on a reservation, but many other cultural significances are explored throughout the film, including the significance of the number 7 to most Indigenous communities. Songs My Brother Taught Me was the directorial debut of Chloe Zhao, known for Nomadland. The film was nominated for Best Feature Film at the Independent Spirit Awards. Songs My Brother Taught Me is a tear-jerking story about the collectivistic culture on an Indigenous reservation where the community’s best interests are put before anything else.

Songs My Brother Taught Me can be streamed on Paramount+

6 Geronimo: An American Legend (1993)

As the Apache people are forced off of their homeland by the Colonizers and herded onto reservations, some refuse to leave without a fight, their leader being Geronimo. Geronimo: An American Legend is based on the story of how the real Apache warrior Geronimo came to surrender to the cavalry and the events that followed. The film was praised by the Indigenous community for its representation of Geronimo and for the twist on the classic Western, focusing on the Indigenous perspective rather than making the cowboy the hero. Geronimo: An American Legend was nominated for Best Sound at the Academy Awards.

Geronimo: An American Legend can be streamed on FuboTV

5 Indian Horse (2017)

After surviving the wrath of the residential school, Saul Indian Horse strives to become a star ice hockey player. Indian Horse is based on the award-winning novel of the same name, and the film has received even more accolades for the directing, editing, and the overall narrative of the film.

The film shows the conditions many Indigenous people were forced to face at the residential schools, including not being allowed to speak their Native language, in Saul’s case, Ojibwe, and some being forced to change their name if it was not a suitable Christian name. Part of what makes Indian Horse so poignant is the harsh realities of the pain inflicted on the survivors of the residential school system that both the Church and the Government were responsible for.

Indian Horse can now be streamed on Netflix

4 Shouting Secrets (2011)

A family is forced to face their estranged past when their matriarch suffers a stroke and falls into a coma, and they must stay together in the confines of the hospital. Wesley is an outcast among his family for leaving the reservation to write a successful novel that is mostly autobiographical in nature. Shouting Secrets examines the meaning of the word family from an Indigenous perspective.

The film has a star-studded cast featuring Chaske Spencer and Gil Birmingham as Wesley and his father, Cal, both of whom appeared in the Twilight saga. Shouting Secrets was praised for its portrayal of family relations and earned itself the Best Feature Film award at the Rhode Island International Film Festival.

Shouting Secrets can now be rented on Apple TV

3 Smoke Signals (1998)

This classic comedy follows Victor and his cousin Thomas. When Victor’s father dies, he leaves for Arizona to go and collect his ashes, but Thomas drags along with him as he has the money for the bus. With comedic features like Rez Radio, a radio station run from a van with the traffic reporter sitting on top, and the infamous car that is stuck in reverse, Smoke Signals is an Indigenous classic.

It is light-hearted in nature and touches on some deep-seated subjects like addiction and racism. Smoke Signals is one of the most popular films among the Indigenous community as it's a comedy that you can reach for again and again.

Smoke Signals can be streamed on Showtime

2 Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner (2001)

Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner is an Inuit film, entirely in the language Inuktitut. The film follows the traditional Inuit story of Atanarjuat who saved his people from the bad medicine by running away, barefoot and naked, from Oki and his goons, trying to kill Atanarjuat. As Atanarjuat struggles to fight the bad medicine, he suffers terrible loss and is separated from his family.

Considered the ultimate Indigenous movie, Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner is a highly underrated film that is a visual preservation of the story of Atanarjuat, transcribed from the oral storytelling by the elders of Igloolik. After a poll taken at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2015, Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner was named the greatest Canadian film of all time.

Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner can be rented on Apple TV.

1 Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)

80-year-old Martin Scorsese demonstrated that age really is just a number with his 27th feature film, Killers of the Flower Moon. The 3-hour 26-minute-long epic, adapted from David Gann’s best-selling non-fiction thriller, is one of the few pictures that concerns itself with the Osage Nation and not one of the predominant Native American tribes. The film traverses the true story of the suspicious and mysterious murders of several members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma around the Osage County oil fields.

Starring a yellow-toothed Leonardo DiCaprio, a scheming Robert De Niro, and the sensational newcomer Lily Gladstone, the historical picture follows the countless conspiracies to commit murder and the execution of at least 60 members of the indigenous tribe. With a number of rich, powerful, and morally reprehensible opportunists swarming around the newfound wealth of the Osage population, the FBI is forced into action when many end up dead.

This is one of Scorsese’s modern classics, but it is worth noting that it is still a film made about the Osage culture by an outsider. While Scrosese did take great pains to focus on their culture, there are still some that are rightfully upset this is not told by a person of Osage descent. It is a complicated matter, and while the movie is great, it should open a wider discussion on who gets to tell these stories. While checking out this film, also check out a film from a filmmaker of Indigenous descent.

Killers of the Flower Moon is currently playing in theaters and will stream on Apple TV at a TBA date.