The Dark Wind (1991)

A Navajo police officer is mixed up in drug smuggling and murder on the reservation.

Director:

Errol Morris

Writers:

Tony Hillerman (novel), Neal Jimenez (screenplay)

Stars:

Lance Baker, Betty C. Barlow, Gary Basaraba

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lance Baker	...	Mr. Archer
Betty C. Barlow	...	Old Navajo Woman #2
Gary Basaraba	...	Larry
Billy Beck	...	Motel Clerk
Arlene Bowman	...	Edna Nezzie
Guy Boyd	...	Agent Johnson
Charlie Carpenter	...	Pilot
Blake Clark	...	Ben Gaines
Julia Collins	...	Old Navajo Woman #1
Kee Collins	...	Old Navajo Man #1
Gary Farmer	...	Cowboy Albert Dashee
Patrick Jensen	...	Albino Boy
John Karlen	...	Jake West
Neil Kayquoptewa	...	Lomatewa
James Koots	...	Taylor

Storyline

A Navajo police officer is mixed up in drug smuggling and murder on the reservation.

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Plot Keywords:

arizona desert | arizona territory | navajo | murder | drug smuggling | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Navajo Hopi

Release Date:

15 May 1992 (UK)

Also Known As:

A Brisa da Morte

Filming Locations:

Navajo Nation, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Carolco Pictures, North Face Motion Picture Company, Wildwood Enterprises

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gary Farmer (Cowboy Dashee) and Lou Diamond Phillips have also worked together on Sioux City and Longmire.

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Goofs

At the road side stands, the flag of Texas has the white star upside down. The stripes are correct so the flag, itself, is not upside down.

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Crazy Credits

The producers would like to acknowledge the Hopi and Navajo people. Their land, culture and humor enlightened us throughout the making of "The Dark Wind."

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Alternate Versions

UK video versions were cut 11 seconds for a "15" rating. The cinema version was uncut at the same category.

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Connections

Followed by Skinwalkers (2002)

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Soundtracks

Louisiana Hush Puppy
Music and Lyrics by Harry Shannon

User Reviews

Just pretend it has nothing to do with the book.

Film adaptations of novels are a mixed bag at best, and The Dark Wind, allegedly based on Tony Hillerman's novel of the same name, isn't one of the best. The screenwriters took several unnecessary liberties with the storyline and characters, including stealing details from other Hillerman novels and dropping Captain Largo entirely in favor of Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn. Fans of Hillerman's novels won't like the portrayal of Jim Chee as an awkward, barely-competent rookie, either.

It's hard to tell whether Lou Diamond Phillips is just failing to portray Jim Chee as he's intended to be, or whether he just didn't bother to read the book and find out. Having replaced Captain Largo's character with Fred Ward as Joe Leaphorn, the script doesn't take advantage of either character's personality, but at least they didn't turn him into one of those generic shouting police captains we see so much of in the movies.

Despite all of this, it's a fairly likeable movie. The film was shot on location in and around the Navajo reservation in Arizona and New Mexico. The scenery is magnificent, and judging from the names in the cast and crew, the producers took advantage of local talent to fill in some of the smaller roles, which adds a good bit of authenticity. If you close one eye and pretend it has nothing to do with a Tony Hillerman novel, you'll probably enjoy it.