The Exiles

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William L @RT77267842 Jun 10, 2021 The perfect film for critics to love - barely recognized by the public upon release and still tightly distributed even today. Not quite a docudrama, but instead told in a documentary style with subjects that could pass for genuine (if the amateur acting style wasn't so prevalent), The Exiles focuses on culture clash in a generation of Native Americans nearing completion of the transition from traditional to urban life. There is still a distinctive identity to their subculture, but plenty of influence from the city - the slicked-back hairstyles, the cruising down Main Street, the blue collar lifestyle, and the young, aimless wandering. The film emphasizes the gaps preventing true integration, particularly the treatment of Native Americans as an uncomfortable 'other', taking on a topic that was certainly progressive for its time (more than a decade before Brando would be deemed a dangerous radical for turning down his Oscar in protest of the treatment of Native Americans), and features some great shots of mid-century LA portrayed as a harsh and hostile (if outwardly subdued) battle for survival, but is paced rather slowly without much in the way of major events over the course of its runtime, and with quite a bit of its delivery coming off as painfully inauthentic. (3/5) See more

Feb 17, 2016 A fascinating hybrid of art and life, The Exiles may not hew entirely faithfully to literal truth but nonetheless conveys a form of artistic honesty that is inescapable. It's a mesmerizing marriage of poetry and prose. See more

Nov 11, 2015 has a doc-like quality to this look at native Americans See more

May 29, 2015 Crude and low-budget but fascinating film is a snapshot of a time (1961) and minority (Native Americans). See more

Feb 27, 2014 The cover features breathless reviews by phonies, enraptured at a film where we watch irresponsible adults stagger around in the dark. Hardly miraculous but still an interesting project taken on by the filmmakers. I just don't like the hyperbolic ejaculation smeared on the jacket. But seriously, no normal human being uses the term "bread" as much as the turd characters in this movie. See more

Jun 15, 2012 it is a time capsule of los angeles and a moving portrait of young urban indians in the late 1950s. featuring untrained actors who are startlingly natural and beautiful b/w photography of an LA that has changed beyond recognition, the film follows young men on a friday night of drinking from barhopping to their after party high above the city, where they drum and dance to recall their faraway homes. a remarkable film See more

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The Exiles

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