Customer Reviews

The Last of His Tribe

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This film is a must see for many reasons, primarily because it documents the very end of the ~15,000 year legacy of free Native Americans on this continent: "Ishi," the last Yahi and free ranging Native American is forced by circumstance to enter modern civilization in the early 20th Century in California. The historical significance alone makes it worth seeing.

Beyond that, Graham Greene and Jon Voight give outstanding and moving performances. Greene (who is always excellent - Clearcut, Thunderheart, Dances With Wolves, etc.) as Ishi, and Voight as the genius anthropologist who takes him in.

Voight's character is a pure scientist through and through who finds it difficult to get emotionally involved with much of anything. He prefers to look at the world in terms of evidence and hard data. He is distant as his wife is dying, and Ishi tells him (paraphrasing) 'you put me in your book, but not in your heart.'

"Last of his Tribe" is a satisfying, sweet, & good, (if not great) movie. It is the simplified (& slightly fictionalized) account of the last Yana Indian nicknamed, "Ishi" by A. Kroeber (an early anthropologist at U.Berkley). It accurately portrays Kroeber's struggle to keep emperical distance from his subject as his love & friendship grew for this stoic, kind, and generous man. It is based upon the (second-hand account) book written by Kroeber's second wife Theodora (also an Anthropologist) over a decade after the events. A. Kroeber never published anything about Ishi- and even quit Anthropology for a few years after Ishi's death, so distraught was he over his friend's death, and the perception that they had killed him by working him too hard (Ishi died of tuberculosis 3 months into Sapir's linguistic analysis). The film is sensitively acted by experts (Jon Voight, Graham Greene, David Ogden Stiers). The sets & details are reasonably accurate , but even when they could translate Ishi's stories, songs, & explanations literally, they could often not make sense of them- lacking the cultural background knowledge & the Yahi's conception of the universe/ time. The film takes some unnecessary liberties with the story (**No mention of translators E. Sapir or Indian S. Botwi** Ishi was more involved with the community- playing with local children, dating, etc.** what stunned Ishi most was crowds- he had never seen more than about 60 people together in his life** Dr. Pope was one of Ishi's main advocates/friends & not weird & insensitive ** Kroeber was able to go on sabbatical in Europe [not work at a NY museum] b/c Sapir was working with Ishi... You'll cry at the end. Read T. Kroeber's book, " Ishi in Two Worlds: A Biography of the Last Wild Indian in North America" and the dvd documentary, "Ishi - The Last Yahi".

I read the book, but the movie really brings home what the story meant. Truly amazing and heart wrenching - you will cry for Ishi, you will cry for all the Native Americans. Truly a must see! You will not be disappointed. Greene does another remarkable job!

This movie has great historical value, especially for the State of California. The story of Ishi is one everyone should know. He was the LAst of His Tribe and just came walking out of the bush one day. No one even thought there was any of his tribe left and he taught us all a great deal about a people that had been wiped of the face of the earth. The acting in this movie was great and if you are a fan of Ishi then this is definately a movie you want to see. If you are a fan of History, see it as well.

When I saw this movie it was just by happenstance. I didn't set out to watch it. I was just bored and found it on the store shelf. I was so shocked that I had never heard of this movie. Being a Native American from the Oneida and Stockbridge Munsee Tribes I am drawn to movies about Native Americans especially those that are based on fact. I had never even heard of this person or that anyone like this existed. My first feeling upon starting to watch the movie was of feeling cheated. Wondering why if this story was out there our teachers in school never used it to "enlighten" their students etc. Then as the story unwinds I found myself extremely sad. I cried at the end because it all felt so surreal. Even to this day when I think about the movie, the story of this man, I feel lost. Stories like this make you wonder what life is all about and how fleeting life is. We're all here but a second then we're gone. Will we leave a legacy of any substance? Hmmm still points to ponder. I guess I felt cheated because Ishi's life did matter to someone, but that most of society will never know of him or his tribe. At times like these the world seems soooo big and lost. I wish Ishi's life story was made available to young people while they are in school. And in that regard I will no doubt buy a couple of copies to distribute to the local schools in my area. And just maybe we can spread a little knowledge about the indigenous people of these United States. Our culture has almost been swallowed whole by the cultures that moved in, it's nice to know that someone cared enough to put pen to paper and detail Ishi's life. Thanks to all who wrote the book and those who decided to make it into a movie. I also, want to point out that the movie left me wanting a lot more. I feel like you should go ahead and watch the movie but then buy the book so that you can delve into the real person Ishi was. A movie a little less than 2 hours does not do Ishi's life justice...

I remember first seeing this as a play when I was about 10 years old performend by a community theater group. It was so powerful, the story stuck with me for years. The movie is also powerful, and allows the viewer to see the perspective and dilemnas that anthropologists faced (and still face), and also allows the viewer to see Ishi's perspective and world view.

Another good film is the documentary, "Ishi, Last of the Yahi". Both are great for older kids (middle school and up) studying US or California history.

In the early 1900's, one of the last of the free-ranging Indians is caught raiding a slaughterhouse for food. It turns out, he's the last of the Yahi tribe. Dr. Alfred Kroeber (Voight) befriends the man who they name Ishi (Graham Greene). Kroeber refuses the offers of the BIA, the last of the "Wild Indian" branch, who offers to repatriate Ishi to Oklahoma and a reservation.

The story's a strongly moving tale based on a true-life event. This is perhaps Voight and Greene's best acting to date. If you can see this and not be moved to tears, your heart is of iron.

Rebecca Kyle, August 2008

This film shows the side of Californias history that no one wants to talk about. It makes you realize how important it is to hold on to our family culture, and history no matter what your background. This is a film anyone who lives in California, or anywhere for that matter should watch.

The story of Ishi, Last of his tribe. Based on true account and I was greatly pleased that the movie rendition came so close to the book. I teach native american culture, and will use this film when reviewing California Indians.

I have been to the CA State Museum and have seen Ishi's posessions and am impressed that a man who lost so much, was able to give back to the people who took it away from him

I whole heartedly reccomend this movie for watching, not only for the personal interest, but for humanitarian reasons also.

What a wonderful, enlightening, sad & even funny story. Just like many other things (i.e. the La Amistad story), why was this not taught to us in school?? U.S. History, Social Studies, English reading list... As a 40-something I feel cheated to just now have happened upon the 'ISHI' story. So glad I did, and am now reading the book. The actors in this film were fantastic. Graham Greene made this character real (he's awesome anyway), and Jon Voight was excellent. Their performances brought tears more than once during this film. Thank goodness for D. Ogden Stiers' great comic relief! More than great entertainment... It will change your perception, attitudes and ideas about people and our history.