The Education of Little Tree
by Richard Friedenberg
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DVD details
Actor: Christopher Heyerdahl, James Cromwell, Joseph Ashton, Mika Boorem, Tantoo CardinalDirector: Richard Friedenberg
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Subtitled)
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 115 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-03-12
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Paramount
DVD Reviews of The Education of Little Tree
DVD Review: Touching Film - Think Of Others While Looking At The Dog Star Tonight
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a beautiful small film. It was an interesting enjoyable hour and 50 minutes. The young boy, Little Tree, is simply fantastic. Grandpa is played to perfection. Grandma feels a bit too young, she must be played by a younger actress dressed and made up to look older. Willow John is simply fantastic.
Great cast, lovely setting, heart warming message, calm slow deliberate editing, and decent production - what is not to like about this film. The one tiny chink in the armour is that the story has been told a few times. And there's a sense that we should be in awe about nature and the education. It's a tiny nit to pick, in an otherwise really good movie.
The story is pretty simple. It will make you cry. The director has managed to make the viewer care that much about his characters. But you will also feel wonderful at the very end. And maybe, you'll look up at the Dog Star and think of people that have passed away or that you are separated from.
Yes, I cried about 5 times. Would I watch this movie again, yes. My family disappered after the first half hour, but they were in the mood for some silly comedy. A beautiful small film.
The film is PG, I think the MPAA warning at the beginning said - old fashioned discipline. The boy is 11 in the film. Everything that happens is appropriate for anyone that age to see. There is a moment where a father takes his belt to his daughter. And there's a bit of strong language here and there. But it's a grandpa teaching his grandson the ways of the world. Well, forewarned to make your choices.
The DVD has no special features, only the movie and scene selections.
DVD Review: Politically Correct
Summary: 1 Stars
I rented this movie and was initially delighted with the cinamotography and actors. Not long into the film the thrust of the message became overt: all things Indian are wise, good and wonderful; all things white or Christian are hypocritic, laughable and not to be trusted. The writer commited the same atrocity on whites and Christians that was done to American Indians by the U.S. government and white settlers that were biggoted, selfish and downright evil. You don't right wrongs by portraying history incorrectly or by blanket statements that condem all. In the end, what could have been a good movie became predictable, a lie and boring. DVD Review: Exceptional movie
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie is a must-see because of the lessons it imparts with such emotional intensity & love...one of the greatest movies I've ever seen & the scenery is spectacular. The cast is exceptional & I wish we had more movies like this one...it should be required viewing for all families.. DVD Review: Heavily Cliched by Amateur Director
Summary: 1 Stars
I caught this movie on TV this morning, had never heard of the book.
Whoa, where to start!
From the opening moments, too much exposition of who,what,where, why and when instead of peppering it out sparingly through the movie.
Everyone is a walking cliche'. I winced when Graham Greene first came on screen dressed like what Hollywood thinks an Indian should look like, he being quiet and so attuned to the "spirits" he could barely speak. I hated that the director chose to "tell" of the Trails of Tears instead of "showing" it to us via flashbacks. In fact I zoned out during this 5 minute disseration and never heard the end.
Little Tree is 8 years old in this story, talks with the wisdom of a 50 year old. Yuk! I HATE that! He speaks in phrases that belong in a Hallmark sympathy card.
James Cromwell did less than phone in his performance with acting so bad I was squirming. The director/writer(?) made his character spew so much exposition during the beginning of the movie I wanted to yell "Shut up!Just SHUT UP!"
Everyone else in the movie was pure Appalachian, inbred Deliverance types. We just needed some good ol' banjo music, but we got the fiddle player instead.
The director whose name I have thankfully forgotten shamelessly stole cinematic scenes from Legends of the Fall, The Yearling (the death of grandpa vs Penny Baxter's ill with snakebite bedscene, both identically composed and lit) and probably A River Runs Through It. I don't know if this director's still making movies, but we can only pray he isn't. Truthfully I don't believe this story would have translated well to the screen, some just can't make the leap, but in the hands of Robert Redford, who is a true cinematic artist, I think he could have truly improved upon the book as he did with the exquisite Horse Whisperer.
The scene when Grandpa comes to save Little Tree at the school and stabs the knife into the ground by the gate is so heavy handed I laughed. It screamed, "Look! This is a message! We're making a point here! And we'll make danged sure you don't miss it! "
This movie is every best-selling author's nightmare of what COULD become of the baby they have labored to conceive, gestate and deliver.
DVD Review: Sad
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie communicates well some of the heart break of "normalizing" American Indian children, especially those with mixed blood. This is a heartwarming story with a great plot. It teaches many lessons for those open to learning. It is a glimpse at social/welfare system that believes that certain material advantages make a child safer and happier. It has a blind eye for the value of love, support, family bonds, simple living and nature in the growth and development of a child. A devoted American Indian made the greatest difference in the outcome of the story. An excellent addition to my American Indian related movies.
Description of The Education of Little Tree
In 1935, an 8-year-old orphaned boy is sent to live in the Tennessee mountains with his grandparents. He doesn't yet know that he is half Cherokee, on his grandmother's side. As he learns about life and the Cherokee "way" from his grandparents, Little Tree's sensitivity to nature and to others grows.At first it might seem easy to dismiss this movie as hokey, especially when Little Tree's Scottish grandfather teaches him to make whiskey and he befriends a dog. But the film gains emotional power when Little Tree becomes close to an older Cherokee who tells him about the Trail of Tears. When the government places Little Tree in an Indian school, where he is abused physically and psychologically, the tough issue of the forced assimilation of Native Americans isn't glossed over. Excellent performances and a gripping story make this well worth watching with children ages 8 and up.
An interesting side note: Forrest Carter, who wrote the book the movie is based on, was a one-time KKK member and speechwriter for George Wallace. It's hard to imagine how a former white supremacist could write such a moving tale about racism. Despite the controversy surrounding Carter, this sensitive film deserves to be taken on its own terms. --Elisabeth Keating
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