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Smoke Signals
- 143 statements
- 27 feature instances
- 11 referencing feature instances
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Smoke Signals is a 1998 comedy-drama film directed by Chris Eyre. It is the first movie to be written, directed, and co-produced by Native Americans.Geeky, orphaned Thomas (Evan Adams) lives on the Coeur d'Alene reservation in Idaho where he's reluctantly looked after by stoic Victor (Adam Beach), whose long-gone father Arnold (Gary Farmer) saved Thomas from the fire that killed his parents. When Victor learns of Arnold's death in Phoenix, Thomas says he'll pay the expenses of the trip if he can accompany Victor. The young men reach an understanding during their travels, while Victor struggles to deal with his complicated feelings about his father and the past.Adapted from the short story This Is What It Means To Say Phoenix, Arizona, featured in the short story collection Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight In Heaven by Sherman Alexie, who also wrote the screenplay.A Spiritual Successor saw release at film festivals in 2023, in the form of a mockumentary called Hey Viktor!, directed by and starring the now-grown Cody Lightning as an Adam Westing version of himself, who is disillusioned that everyone else from the movie became popular while he only gets offers for gay pornos and pro-fracking commercials. So he decides to make a Smoke Signals sequel, if only he can get Beach onboard. | |
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2023-08-28T22:30:44Z | |
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Smoke Signals / int_121865ac | type |
Noble Savage | |
Smoke Signals / int_121865ac | comment |
He does tend to insult people while smiling the whole way through. Could be his personal way of subverting the "Stoic, Grim Noble Savage" trope. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_14ed6ab7 | type |
Does This Remind You of Anything? | |
Smoke Signals / int_14ed6ab7 | comment |
Does This Remind You of Anything?: When two white men steal the boys' bus seats. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_17501df2 | type |
Cool Old Guy | |
Smoke Signals / int_17501df2 | comment |
Cool Old Guy: Arnold. Played basketball and was a very crafty magician. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_23473ae7 | type |
Adaptation Expansion | |
Smoke Signals / int_23473ae7 | comment |
Adaptation Expansion: The movie includes a number of additional scenes and plot points that don't appear in the original story, many of which are adapted from other stories in the collection by Alexie. The movie also adds the character of Suzy Song, who doesn't appear anywhere in Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight In Heaven. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_24ddbe2b | type |
Saw "Star Wars" Twenty-Seven Times | |
Smoke Signals / int_24ddbe2b | comment |
Saw "Star Wars" Twenty-Seven Times: Victor Joseph tweaks Thomas Builds-the-Fire over how many times the latter has seen Dances with Wolves. | |
Smoke Signals / int_24ddbe2b | featureApplicability |
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Smoke Signals / int_28cd01ca | type |
Disappeared Dad | |
Smoke Signals / int_28cd01ca | comment |
Disappeared Dad: Arnold abandoned Victor as a child, and it's the focus of the film. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_38718ea8 | type |
Beautiful All Along | |
Smoke Signals / int_38718ea8 | comment |
Beautiful All Along: Parodied when Thomas unbraids his hair, dons a stylish "Frybread Power" T-shirt, and ditches his glasses...for about five seconds. He keeps the shirt, though. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_3dcc914f | type |
Took a Level in Kindness | |
Smoke Signals / int_3dcc914f | comment |
Took a Level in Kindness: After verbally abusing Thomas for the better part of their journey, when they finally arrive home Victor thanks Thomas and gives him some of Arnold's ashes. To Thomas this is a VERY BIG DEAL. Doubles as a Tear Jerker for Thomas. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_43dc74d0 | type |
Sensitive Guy and Manly Man | |
Smoke Signals / int_43dc74d0 | comment |
Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Thomas is bespectacled and nerdy, whilst Victor is athletic and stoic. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_4655ec83 | type |
Important Haircut | |
Smoke Signals / int_4655ec83 | comment |
Important Haircut: Victor cuts his hair with a folding knife when faced with the family mementos kept by his runaway father. He had previously told Thomas that long, free-flowing hair is an Indian man's sign of pride. His dad cut his hair (and never grew it long again) after he accidentally caused the fire that killed Thomas' parents. Among many Native American tribes, cutting hair off is a sign of mourning. | |
Smoke Signals / int_4655ec83 | featureApplicability |
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Smoke Signals / int_4781adbb | type |
Jerk with a Heart of Gold | |
Smoke Signals / int_4781adbb | comment |
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Victor turns out to be this at the climax of the film. | |
Smoke Signals / int_4781adbb | featureApplicability |
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Smoke Signals / int_47d35854 | type |
Intergenerational Friendship | |
Smoke Signals / int_47d35854 | comment |
Intergenerational Friendship: Arnold and Suzy are this. | |
Smoke Signals / int_47d35854 | featureApplicability |
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Smoke Signals / int_4885c04b | type |
Road Trip Plot | |
Smoke Signals / int_4885c04b | comment |
Road Trip Plot: Victor and Thomas go on a road trip to Phoenix to retrieve Arnold's ashes and grow as people along the way. | |
Smoke Signals / int_4885c04b | featureApplicability |
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Smoke Signals / int_4f6d87f7 | type |
Huge Guy, Tiny Girl | |
Smoke Signals / int_4f6d87f7 | comment |
Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Arnold and Suzy. Amplified by the fact that Arnold is quite wide around the waist. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_6bd689ca | type |
Meaningful Echo | |
Smoke Signals / int_6bd689ca | comment |
Meaningful Echo: "I/He didn't mean to." | |
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Smoke Signals / int_77b009ea | type |
Phrase Catcher | |
Smoke Signals / int_77b009ea | comment |
Phrase Catcher: Victor is on the receiving end of "Hey, Victor!" | |
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Smoke Signals / int_83a903f6 | type |
Stepford Smiler | |
Smoke Signals / int_83a903f6 | comment |
Stepford Smiler: Victor serves as a Type A male example of this. He gives a gymnast Thomas talks to on the bus to Arizona a brutal verbal smackdown after catching her in a lie, all the while smiling. He does tend to insult people while smiling the whole way through. Could be his personal way of subverting the "Stoic, Grim Noble Savage" trope. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_95f2d65e | type |
DefrostingIceKing | |
Smoke Signals / int_95f2d65e | comment |
Defrosting Ice King: Victor is an example of this. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_97ee273 | type |
Momma's Boy | |
Smoke Signals / int_97ee273 | comment |
Momma's Boy: While Victor is generally aloof, cold and a Jerkass to those around him, he clearly has a close bond with his mother, Arlene. Thomas is this in spades with his grandmother. Complete with the selection of wardrobe and the same hair styles. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_a4c37cbe | type |
Mood Whiplash | |
Smoke Signals / int_a4c37cbe | comment |
Mood Whiplash: A flashback of the young Victor riding with his father in a pickup, with his dad telling him fanciful stories of being a magician who can make people disappear. Then Victor drops his dad's beer on accident, and his dad elbows him in the face. | |
Smoke Signals / int_a4c37cbe | featureApplicability |
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Smoke Signals / int_b01abe4f | type |
Catchphrase | |
Smoke Signals / int_b01abe4f | comment |
Catchphrase: Whenever Thomas finishes with one of his stories, Victor usually negates the truthfulness of it with "Thomas, you're so full of shit..." When Thomas wants to get Victor's attention he usually cries out, "HEY VICTOR!" Also by Thomas, "Some days, it's a good day to die. And some days, it's a good day to have breakfast." Earlier in the film a variation of the same phrase is used by Junior, one of Victor's basketball buddies, "Some days, it's a good day to die. And some days, it's a good day to play basketball." | |
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Smoke Signals / int_b11ac9f5 | type |
Abusive Parents | |
Smoke Signals / int_b11ac9f5 | comment |
Abusive Parents: Victor's parents. Arnold is the more pressing case, being willing to strike Victor across the face and even beat his mother right in front of him. His mother isn't innocent either, as it's made pretty clear that her alcoholism was impairing her parenting for most of Victor's early childhood. She does, however, get heaps of credit for finally realizing this trope was at play and then defying it the best that she could. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_bb53d08 | type |
Tear Jerker | |
Smoke Signals / int_bb53d08 | comment |
Doubles as a Tear Jerker for Thomas. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_da6c567 | type |
The Storyteller | |
Smoke Signals / int_da6c567 | comment |
The Story Teller: Thomas is well known as this, much to Victor's annoyance. Arnold proves to be this as well, as shown when he tells the story of how he and Victor "defeated the Jesuits in a basketball game". | |
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Smoke Signals / int_e13156e1 | type |
Mama Bear | |
Smoke Signals / int_e13156e1 | comment |
Mama Bear: Arlene is a strong but nonviolent example of this. After a night of "boozing", she wakes up at the sound of a young Victor breaking beer bottles on the side of their house. The impact of seeing her son in that state prompts her to stop drinking. Being an alcoholic, the fact that she goes cold turkey and evidently STAYS on the wagon proves the lengths she will go to for her son. She is even willing to put up with Arnold's beatings if it means Victor won't have to see her or Arnold drunk ever again. | |
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Smoke Signals / int_eb8ec7c8 | type |
Jerkass | |
Smoke Signals / int_eb8ec7c8 | comment |
While Victor is generally aloof, cold and a Jerkass to those around him, he clearly has a close bond with his mother, Arlene. | |
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The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.
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Ashes to Crashes / int_1190fed6 | |
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Badass Native / int_1190fed6 | |
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Braids, Beads and Buckskins / int_1190fed6 | |
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Clue, Evidence, and a Smoking Gun / int_1190fed6 | |
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Films of 1995–1999 / int_1190fed6 | |
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Injun Country / int_1190fed6 | |
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Native American and First Nations Media / int_1190fed6 | |
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Saw "Star Wars" Twenty-Seven Times / int_1190fed6 | |
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The Alleged Car / int_1190fed6 |
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