New movie reviews, DVD reviews, interviews, and all things film.

Follow Me

• Dark Shadows ***
• Darling Companion **1/2
• God Bless America ***
• Marvel's The Avengers ***1/2
• ReGeneration ***
• Sound of My Voice ***
• The Pirates! Band of Misfits ***1/2
• The Raven ***
• Safe **1/2
• The Lucky One 1/2*
• 4:44 Last Day on Earth **1/2
• Blue Like Jazz **
• The Cabin in the Woods ***1/2
• Damsels in Distress ***1/2
• Lockout **1/2
• The Three Stooges ***
• The Turin Horse ****
• We Have a Pope **1/2
• American Reunion **
• Goon ***
• More

• Bird of Paradise
• Maniac Cop
• Miss Representation
• Mother's Day (2012)
• Murder Obsession
• Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie
• Underworld Awakening
• The Vow
• Clueless
• Haywire
• Hit!
• Men in Black
• New Year's Eve
• The Red House
• More

• Peter Lord
• Abel Ferrara
• Nicholas Sparks
• Whit Stillman
• Sean Hayes
• Terence Davies
• Peter Lord Interview
• Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
• Taika Waititi
• Will Ferrell
• Interview: Ewan McGregor [SF Examiner]
• Interview: the 'Project X' stars [SF Examiner]
• Interview: Oren Moverman
• Interview: Rachel McAdams
• Interview: Ti West
• Interview: Elizabeth Banks
• 2011: The Year's Best Films
• Year's Best DVDs and Blu-Rays
• San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards
• The Decade's Ten Best Films: 2000-2009
• My Top 100 Films [Updated]
• My Top 60 Directors [Updated]
• Christmas Movies
• Essential Halloween & Horror Movies
• Cult Movies
• More Features and Interviews

• Have Yourself a Movie Little Christmas, by Alonso Duralde
• Not Quite a Memoir: Of Films, Books, the World, by Judy Stone
• James Agee: The Library of America Collection, by James Agee
• Just Making Movies, by Ronald L. Davis
• More Books

• Home
• Reviews A-C
• Reviews D-F
• Reviews G-J
• Reviews K-M
• Reviews N-Q
• Reviews R-T
• Reviews U-Z

The online film magazine Combustible Celluloid offers new movie reviews, DVD reviews, film reviews, actor interviews, actress interviews, director interviews, film books and all things cinema related for the thoughtful and passionate. Online for ten years! Over 3000 reviews!

SEARCH MOVIES / CELEB

Smoke Signals (1998)

Rating: 3 1/2 Stars (out of 4)

Indian Summer

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Buy Smoke Signals on DVD

Smoke Signals is a landmark in movie history, being the first film written, directed, and produced by American Indians. Happily, it is also a good film, full of fire and humor and magic. Victor (Adam Beach) goes on an odyssey to collect the remains of his father, who left when Victor was a boy. Thomas (Evan Adams), a nerdy kid who tells stories, goes with him. The storytelling is handled in an engaging, magical way, and we slowly learn what really happened. The movie blows away Indian cliches and misconceptions. Smoke Signals also features the gorgeous Irene Bedard, who was the model for Disney's Pocahontas, and Gary Farmer, from Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man. Smoke Signals was written by Sherman Alexie, adapted from his short stories, and directed by first-timer Chris Eyre. It won the Audience Award and the Filmmaker's Trophy at the Sundance Film Festival, and was featured at the Dockers Classically Independent Film Festival at the Castro.

Starring: Adam Beach, Evan Adams, Irene Bedard, Gary Farmer, Tantoo Cardinal, Cody Lightning, Simon Baker, Monique Mojica, John Trudell, Chief Leonard George, Michael Greyeyes, Darwin Haine, Michelle St. John, Elaine Miles, Cynthia Geary, Gary Taylor, Perrey Reeves, Nicolette Vajtay, Molly Cheek, Robert Miano, Tom Skerritt
Written by: Sherman Alexie, based on his book
Directed by: Chris Eyre
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some intense images
Running Time: 89 minutes
Date: July 3, 1998