We all adore Leo. Whether it be the young artist in "Titanic," con-man in "Catch Me If You Can," or the aristocratic bootlegger in "The Great Gatsby," we all have grown to love the talent Leonardo Dicaprio has shared with us on screen throughout the years.
When Leo won his Oscar the whole world shed a tear. However, some people were emotionally touched by his performance for a different reason...
I was one of those people. "The Revenant" was a beautiful film, that depicted Native American peoples in a very real and artistic manner. There were no fake headbands, wigs, or unnecessary headbands. All of the actors were actually Indigenous.
The push to depict Native Americans in an accurate manner in film was first introduced (on a large scale) when "Daces With Wolves" was released in 1990. Following the release of this major movie, films like "Legends of the Fall," "Smoke Signals," and "Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner" were all released and became successful by piggy backing off the precedent that "Dances With Wolves" set in regards to the historically accurate portrayal of Native American culture and stories in film.
The documentary, "Reel Injun" (available for viewing on Netflix), goes into more detail about the ingenious act of colonialism the film industry has taken on, simply by robbing Native peoples of their identities in movies.
Being a Native American myself, "The Revenant" gave me all of the feels. I felt connected to both the white and Native actors in the movie... all of the characters felt human. There was no stereotypical depiction of a Native American. Leonardo DiCaprio captured all of the feelings on the scale of human emotion. Each and every person in that movie acted as the characters extremely well, but Leo stole the show. "The Revenant" was a breakthrough movie for the Native community, and for Leo's career.
Congratulations from me, my Native friends and relatives, and every young teenage girl who is in love with you, Leo. You truly created a masterpiece. You winning the Oscar means more than you will ever know.
