Watch Drunktown's Finest

Drunktown's Finest is a 2014 American film that delicately explores the complexities of life in a Native American reservation in New Mexico. The movie follows the story of three young individuals interwoven with each other's life stories. The main trio includes Sickboy ( Jeremiah Bitsui), a rebellious, soul-searching Navajo teenager, Nizhoni (MorningStar Angeline), a confident and aspiring transwoman, and Felixia (Carmen Moore), a BIA police officer who is also Nizhoni's father.

Sickboy lives with his grandmother, who strictly follows the Navajo traditions, but this only causes a deeper sense of disconnection within him. He doesn't know who his mother is and struggles to find a sense of identity in a community where the intermix of Navajo culture, and modern western culture is causing a dilution. Sickboy spends his time sitting with friends, trying to drink away his pain, ultimately just adding to it. His character is constantly challenged, like most teenagers, by the unnecessary expectations society and people have put on him compared to what he seeks for himself.

Nizhoni is a young, confident, and aspiring transwoman who is accepted at a university, but financial instability creates obstacles in her pathway. The conversation around being transgender within the Native American community is never easy, but it is significantly more opaque over here. Nizhoni loves herself and reflects a picture of strength through it all, but also finds it challenging to balance the cost of her self-discovery with the expectations of her traditional Navajo family.

Simultaneously, Felixia, a self-assured BIA police officer, balances the responsibility of maintaining law and order as she searches for her estranged daughter. Her journey is both a search of professional validation as well as personal reconciliation. Felixia attempts to balance the themes of motherhood and leadership in a society where the two stand on opposite poles.

Drunktown's Finest heavily focuses on the idea of self-identity and transitions. Each of the central characters is in search of their purpose and where they belong within society. We are exposed to teenage rebellion, self-doubt, and uncertain futures that culminate in an exploration of expanding one's horizons. Sickboy, Nizhoni, and Felixia's storylines intersect at different points throughout the story, steering the direction of the movie.

Director Sydney Freeland masterfully blends humor with the film's challenging themes. The film portrays encounters that are humorous yet societal jabs aimed at the issues within the reservation. Drunktown's Finest has a keen sense of representing realistic Native American stories with utmost honesty and creates an immersive experience that leads us into the life of the characters. We see how society has created high expectations for them, forcing them to strive for their destinies.

The scenery of New Mexico is beautifully captured throughout the movie with its vast open deserts that seamlessly blend into the visual narrative of the story. The cinematography allows the audience to feel the mood of the scenery; the vast openness of the environment brings out an idea of freedom, which is the cornerstone of the film.

The movie has a fantastic soundtrack that showcases the cultural exchange between traditional Navajo music and modern pop music from the likes of Lorde, Beyonce, and Snoop Dogg. The music is an excellent tool to demonstrate the historic and cultural struggles that are weaved in every layer of life within the reservation.

Drunktown's Finest offers an authentic look at the poverty-stricken reservation, the journey of self-identity, and how life within the community plays a prominent role in shaping one's destiny. Not only does it do justice in the representation of Native American stories on the big screen, but the film is also a refreshing statement against stereotypes, making it an undoubtedly excellent watch.

Drunktown's Finest is a 2015 drama with a runtime of 1 hour and 33 minutes. It has received moderate reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 6.8 and a MetaScore of 55.