thirty-two years ago, Robert Redford has steadfastly refused
to allow any motion picture except his legendary "Jeremiah
Johnson" to shoot on his ruggedly beautiful property in
Utah. It was not until he read the script for a film called
"Christmas In The Clouds" that permission was granted.
As with 1998's "Smoke Signals", which was developed
with the help of the Sundance Institute, "Christmas In
The Clouds" is another breakthrough project; the first
romantic comedy set in Indian Country. With a nod to the screwball
comedies of Howard Hawks and Frank Capra, this is a lighthearted
tale of love, bingo, tribal enterprise, and mistaken identity.
The film introduces Choctaw actor Tim Vahle as 'Ray Clouds
on Fire', the well educated but overly conscientious General
Manager who dreams of sold out suites and 4-star reviews for
his tribes' struggling ski resort. When a letter arrives from
the exclusive Worthington Travel Guide to announce that an
anonymous critic has booked a suite there for the holiday,
Ray is determined to get a good review...he has his work cut
out for him.
The resort's Vegetarian Chef (Graham Greene) doesn't want
to cook meat, the maids need to bring their kids to work with
them, the resident handyman is only interested in impressing
the ski bunnies, Ray's loyal assistant, Mary, (Sheila Tousey)
is living in a fantasy of romance novels, and Ray's father
Joe, a retired Chief (Sam Vlahos) just wants to win the new
Jeep Cherokee at the big holiday bingo.
When the old chief's Mohawk pen pal "Tina" (Mari
Ana Tosca) arrives from New York hoping to meet the man who
has been sending her so many lovely letters, she is mistaken
for the "anonymous" critic. In a matching comedy
of errors, she believes that Ray is her pen pal.
As Ray and Tina set out to charm each other, they begin
to fall in love. And while everyone at the resort bends over
backwards making Tina's stay a pleasure, the real critic (M.
Emmet Walsh) encounters one misadventure after the next and
begins to question not only the resort's quality - but also
his own sanity.
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With memorable performances by Rita Coolidge, Wes Studi,
and "Warrior Mouse", Kate Montgomery's feature
debut recently premiered at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival,
where it played to sell-out crowds and received standing
ovations. |
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