| MUMBAI: In order to add variety to its lineup, Star Movies
has over the years aired mini series like Lost and Taken. Now
it will air the epic miniseries Into the West every Thursday at 9 pm from
4 January. It looks at the opening
up of the American West in the 19th century. It tells stories from that period
from the perspective of two families, one of white settlers from Europe and one
of Native Americans who must deal with the new inhabitants.
The two families tell the
dramatic stories of the development of the West from their distinct points of
view. One family is the Wheeler clan, a Virginia family of wheelwrights making
their trek westward. The other family is a plains Native American family hailing
from the Lakota tribe. For too long Hollywood has depicted Indians as savages,
enemies and losers. Now through this miniseries a generation of Native American
filmmakers and actors are trying to overturn stereotypes and tell its own truth.
This series showcases the glaring differences in perspective as seen through not
only the eyes and teachings of the dominant culture, but also as it was and is
seen from the American Indian perspective. There will be a recreation of
key events like Battle of Little Bighorn, Buffalo hunts, the expansion of the
American railroad, Wounded Knee. There will be quite a few subtitles on the show
one of the few times where a show on an English entertainment channel has subtitles.
The series was shot in Calgary and New Mexico. The show has a large cast,
with about 250 speaking parts. The series features actors like Wes Studi, Irene
Bedard, Russell Means, Graham Greene, Raoul Trujillo, Gordon Tootoosis, Michael
Spears, Lance Henriksen, Simon Baker, Gil Birmingham and Sheila Tousey. | 
