Reservation Dogs
This keenly anticipated new series from Jojo Rabbit writerdirector Taika Waititi and Native American Sterlin Harjo is a teenage drama which, despite the title, is a small-town story exploring the lives of people we rarely hear from. Set on a reservation in Oklahoma, it centres on four adolescents who commit petty theft in a bid to make enough money to flee to California. Their goal is to avoid the fate of their late friend Daniel, whose cause of death, they say ambiguously, was where they live.
Based on Harjo’s childhood experiences, the series examines what it means to grow up on in this dead-end community where centuries of oppression and neglect have deprived America’s original inhabitants of the American dream. But the theme of anomie is leavened with segments featuring juvenile high jinks and teenage rivalries being played out in amusing fashion, with a bit of magical realism thrown in – there’s a very funny sequence poking fun at the idea of Native American spirit guides. The four young indigenous leads acquit themselves well and the adult actors deliver finely tuned comedy performances. It shines a light on a community that, for too long, has lived on the margins. Vicki Power