Lily Gladstone is outstanding in Apple TV+'s new movie Fancy Dance, a heartfelt family drama that shines a light on the terrible violence Native American women suffer in the US.
Following her historical Oscar nomination for her role as Mollie Burkhart in Killers of the Flower Moon, Gladstone takes on a present-day narrative that painfully proves that, unfortunately, not much has changed. Indigenous voices are yet to be fully represented on screen.
The story follows Jax (Gladstone), who has been taking care of her teenage niece Roki (played by Isabel Deroy-Olson) since her sister Tawi's disappearance. They live on the Seneca-Cayuga Reservation in Oklahoma, barely surviving through small robberies and yet feeling deeply rooted in their community.
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When Tawi's absence threatens to become permanent, Jax is deemed an unfit guardian due to her criminal record. Roki is forced to move in with Jax and Tawi's white father Frank (Shea Whigham) and his wife Nancy (Audrey Wasilewski) outside of the Reservation. They haven't been able to have kids of their own, so they cling to the opportunity of becoming Roki's new parents.
Frustrated by the police's indifference towards Tawi's situation, Jax is determined to find out the truth about her sister.
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She decides to pick up Roki from her new home to bring her along in her investigation, regardless of the legal consequences for her. Jax also doesn't want Roki to miss this year's powwow, a traditional celebration of Native American culture the teen used to participate in with her now-missing mother.
WATCH FANCY DANCE ON APPLE TV+
Fancy Dance sheds light on an important human rights crisis still affecting Indigenous communities in the US and many other countries, often known as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW).
Through a fictional story that echoes many real-life ones, the movie confronts the systematic violence against Native American women and the inability (or unwillingness) of the authorities to find answers for their relatives.
It raises awareness while stopping short of sensationalising their pain (something many accused Killers of the Flower Moon of doing with its flashy violence) or sounding too preachy. The story ultimately focuses on building a beautiful aunt-niece relationship that explores what it means to be a mother.
This is writer and director Erica Tremblay's movie debut, which she has infused with profound care and understanding — she is a member of the Seneca-Cayuga Nation, where the story is based, and the movie is partly spoken in the Cayuga language.
Also making a terrific debut on the big screen is Isabel Deroy-Olson, who coincidentally played Gladstone's younger incarnation in one episode of Hulu's TV series Under the Bridge.
Inevitably, however, it is Lily Gladstone who shines brightest in the movie.
After becoming the first-ever Indigenous performer to be honoured at the Golden Globes, she delivers a stunning performance as she swiftly moves between toughness and vulnerability. Whether she puts on a proud smile while looking at her co-star or breaks down in tears at the emotional climax of the story, the actor makes Jax feel painfully alive, scars and all.
Although there is still much to achieve in terms of representing Native American stories on screen, Gladstone is leaving her mark by offering nuanced and important portrayals that we rarely get to see on screen.
She's also using her newly found star power to put a movie like Fancy Dance into the spotlight, which is exactly where it should be.
Fancy Dance is now available to watch on Apple TV+.
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Mireia (she/her) has been working as a movie and TV journalist for over eight years. Based in the UK, she is a former deputy movies editor at Digital Spy, and previously worked for the Spanish magazine Fotogramas. Mireia's work has been published in other outlets such as Esquire and Elle in Spain, and WeLoveCinema and GamesRadar+ in the UK. She is also a published author, having written the essay Biblioteca Studio Ghibli: Nicky, la aprendiz de bruja about Hayao Miyazaki's Kiki's Delivery Service.
During her years as a freelance journalist and film critic, Mireia has covered festivals around the world and has interviewed high-profile talents such as Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and many more. She's also taken part in juries such as the FIPRESCI jury at Venice Film Festival and the short film jury at Kingston International Film Festival in London. LinkedIn
