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''Thunderheart'' is a 1992 contemporary western mystery film directed by Michael Apted from an original screenplay by John Fusco. The film is a loosely based fictional portrayal of events relating to the Wounded Knee incident in 1973.〔 Followers of the American Indian Movement seized the South Dakota town of Wounded Knee in protest against federal government policy regarding Native Americans. Incorporated in the plot is the character of Ray Levoi, played by actor Val Kilmer, as an FBI agent with Sioux heritage investigating a murder on a Native American reservation. Sam Shepard, Graham Greene, Fred Ward and Sheila Tousey star in principal supporting roles. Also in 1992, Apted had previously directed a documentary surrounding a Native American activist episode involving the murder of FBI agents titled ''Incident at Oglala''. The documentary depicts the indictment of activist Leonard Peltier during a 1975 shootout on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The film was a co-production between the motion picture studios of TriStar Pictures, Tribeca Productions, and Waterhorse Productions. It was commercially distributed by TriStar Pictures theatrically, and by Columbia TriStar Home Video for home media. ''Thunderheart'' explores civil topics, such as discrimination, political activism and murder.〔Michael Apted. (1992). ''Thunderheart'' (picture ). United States: TriStar Pictures.〕 Following its cinematic release, the film garnered several award nominations from the Political Film Society. On November 24, 1992, the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack was released by the Intrada Records label. The film score was composed by musician James Horner. ''Thunderheart'' premiered in theaters in wide release in the United States on April 3, 1992 grossing $22,660,758 in domestic ticket sales. The film was viewed as a minor financial success after its theatrical run, and was met with generally positive critical reviews before its initial screening in cinemas. The widescreen DVD edition of the film featuring scene selections and the theatrical trailer, was released in the United States on September 29, 1998. ==Plot== During the early 1970s, FBI agent Ray Levoi is assigned to aid in the investigation of a political murder; that of tribal council member Leo Fast Elk (Allan R.J. Joseph), on a Native American reservation in South Dakota. Agent William Dawes, Ray's superior, has chosen him for the task due to his mixed Sioux heritage which might assist in the inquiry as they interview local townspeople. Ray is partnered with agent Frank "Cooch" Coutelle, who has diligently worked on the probe looking to apprehend a prime suspect: Aboriginal Rights Movement radical Jimmy Looks Twice. While helping Cooch track down the suspect, Ray gradually becomes sensitized to Indian issues, partially from his attraction to Maggie Eagle Bear, a political Native American activist and schoolteacher.〔 Mocked and ridiculed by the locals (being called a "Washington Redskin"), including tribal police officer Walter Crow Horse, Ray finds that he has an unaccountable standing with some of the tribal elders such as Grandpa Sam Reaches. The natives recognize Ray as "Thunderheart", a Native American hero slain at the Wounded Knee Massacre in the past, and now reincarnated to deliver them from their current troubles.〔 Much to Cooch's anger, Ray comes to suspect there is a conspiracy and cover-up involving the small town. He and Crow Horse later discover that a local government-sponsored plan to strip mine uranium on the reservation is at the root of the killings. The mining is polluting the water supply and fueling a bloody conflict between the reservation's anti-government ruling council and the pro-government natives who, led by tribal council president Jack Milton, are not above using violence to further their aims. Milton does not own the land where the mining occurs, but gets kickbacks from the leases. Cooch is later revealed to be part of the scandal to silence the opposition and help broker the land deal. Soon after finding Maggie Eagle Bear and former convict Richard Yellow Hawk murdered, a showdown ensues between Cooch and pro-government collaborators against Ray, Crow Horse and the anti-government activists. Cooch becomes outnumbered by the armed resistance and is later investigated on charges of corruption.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Thunderheart」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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