"The Searchers" Analysis

My thoughts about watching a western film were hesitant since most follow the same plot line. Indians are the senseless corrupt guys and the Whites are the keen hero’s.  “The Searchers” wasn’t as bad as I anticipated but it’s still a wonder why it was favored by Steven Spielberg.  There were many points of conflict and times of anticipation that kept me watching even though a lot of scenes were expected.  It started with Uncle Ethan surprising his family with a visit.  Everyone reacts ecstatically and anyone could tell at that point that the well-respected Ethan is the hero of the film.  The camera always centers him and the video is shot from either his level or shooting up which represents Ethan to be a powerful persistent character. 

            On the opposite spectrum, the view on the Indians role in the film hinted to be the direct definition of savages.  In every way they are thought to be ruthless and cruel.  They killed Ethan’s family and burned down there house only to spare the little girl, Debbie.  They scalped the family and left them to rot.  Throughout the film, the stereotypes of Native Americans were plentiful.  They all were experts on horses, wore headbands and leather clothing with feathers attached to everything.   When Ethan’s search group were being chased by the Comanche, the first shot showed them to as being closely followed but then the next shot showed them to be a good 300 feet ahead.  This emphasizes that Ethan is untouchable and the White men were unstoppable.  When Ethan went to search for Debbie where the white man captivated the 14 year old white girls from the Indians, they were shown to be mentally disturbed.  Ethan commented saying “it was hard to believe they were White”.  The Indians were thought to be stupid and since the girls lived with them, they turned to be mentally unstable as well.   Another scene in the film that expresses negative stereotypes of Indians is when Pauly unknowingly acquires a wife by trading the Indian tribe with a hat.  The fact that the father of that woman gave her daughter away with a hat, emphasis’s the stupidity of Native Americans in the film.  

            The women in the film were very much shown to be different.  The men could fight but the women had to be inside and the search team consisted of men while the women waited at home.  The White women are thought of to be useless, weak, and innocent.  They were the stereotypical housewives who never had a speck of dirt on them or a drop of sweat. 

            Overall, I thought the film was decent.  I could expect much of what was going to happen but it was still interesting to see how the director went about expressing all of the stereotypes. The timeline in the movie was terrible because it made no note to show that time has passed.  Usually seasons express a change in time, but in the movie it snowed one day and was incredibly hot the next. The plot line was also confusing because it left moments in the film unanswered.  I don’t think I would watch this movie again, but I would recommend it to someone who wants to see a movie with a high amount of stereotypes toward Indians.