Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Thunderheart Blu-ray Movie Review

"Sometimes they have to kill us. They have to kill us because they can't break our spirit."

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown May 31, 2024

If you haven't seen Val Kilmer's very personal, very moving 2021 documentary, Val -- narrated by his son, whose voice is a dead ringer for the now nearly silent actor's younger self's vocal intonations -- you're really missing out. An actor I enjoyed but never really appreciated throughout the 1980s and '90s, Kilmer is more than just a kind, giving personality when he steps off a movie set; he's a generation's on-screen everyman; an action hero who wears his heart on his sleeve, an antihero struggling with the moral conundrums of vengeance, or the villain desperately trying to redeem his actions. And he likely won't be with us all that much longer. (Top Gun: Maverick was almost certainly his last screen appearance.) Which is why an oft-forgotten 1992 film like Thunderheart is so much fun, even if it ultimately doesn't venture that far beyond the boundaries of genre cliche. Kilmer is young and electric, working to forge a career separate from his contemporaries, and his efforts show.

As a series of brutal murders (is there any other kind?) stuns a rural Native American reservation town, seemingly Caucasian FBI agent Ray Levoi (Val Kilmer) arrives on the scene to investigate, chosen for the assignment solely due to his biracial Sioux heritage. His immediate superior (iconic character actor Fred Thompson) knows that Ray is relatively inexperienced, but hopes that his presence will make it easier for law enforcement like Ray's partner, Agent Frank 'Cooch' Coutelle (Sam Shepard), to gather evidence and collect eye-witness accounts. And while the reservation's primary police officer (Graham Greene) views Ray as an outsider, a key elder in the tribe (Chief Ted Thin Elk) believes him to be the reincarnated spirit of Thunderheart, a Native American hero. Directed by the late Michael Apted (Gorillas in the Mist, Nell) and written by John Fusco (Young Guns and its sequel), the film also stars Fred Ward, Sheila Tousey, John Trudell, Julius Drum, Sarah Brave, Allan R.J. Joseph, Sylvan Pumpkin Seed, Patrick Massett, and Rex Linn.

Juggling a pragmatic criminal investigation with sociopolitical challenges of the era and a spiritual, almost mystical under-plot would be tricky for any film, and while Thunderheart doesn't always catch every falling knife and bowling ball (juggling metaphors!), it does find a good rhythm and delivers a socially conscious take on the "outsider" crime flick. Kilmer is excellent, albeit a bit too wide-eyed and aw-shucks ma'am on occasion, as is his supporting cast, a who's who of familiar faces that elevate an otherwise pulpy bit of murder most foul to places it might not quite reach without them. The Native American actors are particularly skilled, avoiding the jaw-tightening tough guy takes that Shepard employs (in which he constantly points his finger in the face of Kilmer's Ray), and the film's endgame is nearly as satisfying as the relationships drawn between the agents and tribespeople. There's too much dated '90s gruffness from the agents and, conversely, too much of a softness in Ray's approach, but it serves the plot well and avoids racial stereotypes on the whole. Not to 2024's standards, mind you, but close. (Thunderheart wouldn't be cancelled; simply dismissed or passed by entirely.)

But again, it might seem obvious in retrospect, but Kilmer is up to something at every turn, intent on making Ray a different kind of lead agent, churning with complexity and burdened with so many things. I can only imagine what Kilmer's 2000s and 2010s career might have been had Hollywood and the moviegoing public kept him firmly in A-list roles, rather than allowing him to disappear for so long a time into the bowels of straight-to-video movie headlining. It helps too that the American desert serves as such a compelling character all its own, with a blazing high-noon sun infusing many a scene with a discomfort and sweltering edge that only intensifies any conflict that arises. Oh, I could've definitely done without the strip-mined uranium subplot and all its political ham-fistedness (not that the cause itself isn't noble), and the message points are no doubt lost on modern audiences, at least in part. But Kilmer is so engaging -- and weirdly endearing here -- that it hardly matters. This is "serious" '90s crime drama at its most decent. Thunderheart deserves to be remembered and watched. Is it the best thing Kilmer delivers in the decade? Hardly. It just offers enough rewards to the uninitiated to earn a modest recommendation.

Thunderheart Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Thunderheart's 1080p/AVC-encoded video transfer came as a nice surprise. While I suspect the use of an ever-so-slight application of noise reduction, the film looks great, almost in spite of its thirty-plus years, and doesn't have any major discernible flaws. Colors are extremely warm (it is the desert after all) but exceedingly lifelike, with only a handful of shots exhibiting overly flushed facial hues. Contrast and black levels are dialed in with aplomb, giving the film enough of a sweat-dripped neo-noir aesthetic to nail cinematographer Roger Deakins (yep, that Roger Deakins) and Apted's chosen look and intended visual tone. Detail teeters between nearly excellent and excellent as well, with crisp, halo-free edge definition and plenty of fine textures, along with carefully delineated shadows that don't disappoint. The print doesn't struggle either. There's no pesky specks, damage or wear-n-tear, and the encode avoids blocking and banding without exception. A hint of crush interferes with a few darker shots, but no worries; Thunderheart never wanders too far off path.

Thunderheart Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Thunderheart's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is merely fine. Fidelity and dynamics aren't problematic by any means, nor is there any looming issue to point to. The mix is merely okay, putting too much emphasis on James Horner's at-times overbearing score and infusing sound effects with canned weight and presence. Ah well. Dialogue is clear and intelligible at all times. Prioritization is otherwise adequate. LFE output is solid (just not very chest-thumping when called upon). And rear speaker activity does a good job creating fairly immersive outdoor environments. More natural ambient elements and more exacting directionality might have made investigative scenes that much more impactful, but again, we have a Horner score to highlight (Apted seems to say from the mixing bay). Again, nothing is bad. Just too ordinary and heavy-handed (and underwhelming) to soar.

Thunderheart Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Two extras are included on the Blu-ray release of Thunderheart: a fairly decent audio commentary featuring screenwriter John Fusco (and ported over from previous DVD editions) and the film's bland-yet-overwrought theatrical trailer.

Thunderheart Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Thunderheart isn't a quintessential '90s classic but it does deserve more love, even if only for Kilmer's career-rising performance. Sony's Blu-ray delivers on the AV front as well thanks to a striking video presentation. Its lossless audio track may be borderline serviceable and it lacks compelling extras (beyond its screenwriter commentary), but there's enough here to warrant a look.