‘Free Leonard Peltier’ Review: Doc About Imprisoned Indigenous Activist Is Timelier Than Ever, but Leaves Too Much Unexamined

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Towards the end of Jesse Short Bull and David France’s recent documentary titled “Free Leonard Peltier“, Native activist Nick Tilsen commends Leonard Peltier’s wit but raises a point of caution. Peltier has a somewhat irreverent personality, and in jest, Tilsen worries that if, after serving close to half a century in prison, Peltier were to be freed, he might become the one getting ‘canceled’.

The documentary titled “Free Leonard Peltier” offers an entertaining tangent, but it fails to showcase Leonard Peltier’s personality or his sense of humor, making him seem less like a person and more like an idea or a cause. This could indicate that there is an issue with the approach or focus of the documentary, as a film about the long-term fight for Leonard Peltier’s release from prison has the potential to be captivating. However, the documentary leans heavily towards retelling Leonard Peltier’s legal case repeatedly, rather than delving into the human aspects of the struggle.

The film “Free Leonard Peltier,” undoubtedly one of the most pertinent premieres at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, has just emerged from the editing suite with fresh edits, following President Joe Biden’s decision on January 19 to commute Leonard Peltier’s life sentence for the murder of two federal agents to indefinite home confinement. (The filmmakers had to swiftly return to the editing room to incorporate this latest development before its screening at Sundance.)

The current news about “Free Leonard Peltier,” despite being so relevant and up-to-date, oddly seems outdated because the issues that appear to have been resolved actually spark new, unanswered questions. The documentary captures the zeitgeist, but it doesn’t delve into what the recently detected heart rate signifies.

Over two-thirds of its 111-minute duration, the film “Free Leonard Peltier” primarily presents a factual account of the events leading up to and following the 1975 confrontation at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. The film provides background information on the American Indian Movement from the ’60s and ’70s, highlighting historical instances of treaty violations, the impact of the boarding school system, conflicts with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the U.S. government’s attempts to suppress Indigenous cultures. While it offers context, it does not delve deeply into these topics.

The documentary features older interviews with Leonard Peltier instead of new ones, but it also includes discussions with several activists who were present during the shootout at Pine Ridge. There are scenes from protests and events related to the shootout, however, when these fall short, the filmmakers resort to what they call “artificial intelligence recreations.” Whether or not this method is morally acceptable is a topic for others to discuss. I’ll just say that these reenactments don’t offer a distinctive visual style and contribute very little new information. Essentially, they serve to fill in gaps in the narrative with minimal impact.

In the fact-selecting segment of the documentary, Short Bull and France intentionally overlook facts that weaken their argument regarding Peltier’s guilt. Despite the evidence showing that the link between Peltier and the gun connected to the bullets that killed the two agents has largely been debunked, it continues to be the cornerstone of the government’s case. The documentary fails to address Peltier’s changing accounts of the events over the years or acknowledge that the seven years added to his life sentence stem from a prison escape in 1979. These omitted details do not change my belief that Peltier was unfairly prosecuted, but they are significant aspects of the story.

Going beyond just focusing on the gun aspect, the documentary links Peltier’s injustice to a longstanding tradition of being overlooked or ignored – a fact that is not surprising given its history. However, it’s not groundbreaking information because attempts to secure Peltier’s pardon and erase his case from public memory have been making headlines since at least the Clinton era, if not before.

Perhaps the part of the documentary that struck me as particularly impactful was the ongoing activism campaign, where modern generations of Native American activists are uniting to champion an historic figure. The scenes showing Tilsen, Holly Cook Macarro, and other advocates working on Peltier’s final parole hearing, as well as making arrangements for his post-release life, have a sense of freshness while still retaining strong ties to the past. Additionally, because it is current, the filmmakers don’t need to resort to AI reconstructions. Instead, we experience these events directly.

The documentary “Free Leonard Peltier” won’t be the only one telling Leonard Peltier’s story, but it will uniquely feature coverage of Native activists during the time when President Biden commuted his sentence. This significant moment at the end of the film was likely anticipated by the filmmakers given Biden’s presidency was nearing its end.

Regardless of its preparation, the film concludes with a festive scene that fails to tackle the implications of Peltier receiving house arrest rather than a full pardon. This documentary centers around injustice, yet it’s released at a time when justice appears to have been served on the surface. However, one might wonder if this is truly the case. What would justice mean for Leonard Peltier?

It’s clear that premiering a documentary at Sundance can boost its visibility and create an appealing symmetry, considering Robert Redford has long advocated for Leonard Peltier’s cause and narrated the 1992 film “Incident at Oglala: The Leonard Peltier Story“. However, it seems that the quality of “Free Leonard Peltier” may not have been significantly impacted by this.

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2025-01-28 03:56