The Indian Runner

Director: Sean Penn 
Cast: David Morse, Viggo Mortensen, Valeria Golino, Patricia Arquette, Jordan Rhodes, Dennis Hopper, Sandy Dennis, Charles Bronson
Genre: Drama 1991
Running time: 127 mins. 
Rating:★★★

As deputy sheriff in a small town, Joe (David Morse) leads a pretty simple life with his loving family. However, his idyllic existence abruptly changes when his troubled brother Frank (Viggo Mortensen) arrives unannounced at Joe's door. Much to the chagrin of his wife (Valeria Golino), Joe wants to help Frank make a better life for himself. But Joe soon discovers that this is a formidable task. And as Frank continues his destructive behavior, Joe decide's he's had enough, and they square off in a final showdown that pits blood against blood.

 How can you go wrong when you have Dennis Hopper, Sandy Dennis, and Charles Bronson cast? You can't!!!! Now, the correlation between the beginning sequence of the Native American warrior running down a deer to steal its breath with the next sequence of the deputy sheriff in a high speed chase that leads to him shooting the "criminal", seems disconnected. However, it all ties together in the end, when Joe (Morse) high speed chases his brother, Frank (Mortensen) at the end. All Joe sees, in that ending sequence, is little brother in his cowboy outfit and not this murderous criminal of a man that lied in front of him. And the hardest thing for him was to let his brother and that image go. Perhaps Joe was the Native American, trying to rescue or steal the breath of his brother. And Frank was the deer, too wild to be confined.

Viggo Mortensen, through his performance, brings a dangerous, restless, trouble-seeking exterior with vulnerability and unresolved psychological issues interior. Tragedy strikes the brothers twice, once with the death of their mother (Sandy Dennis) and the suicide of their father (Charles Bronson). Beautiful chemistry between David Morse and Viggo Mortensen as brothers. The butting of heads between the two characters allow them to get to the heart of the problem. And Patricia Arquette's performance balances Mortensen's character's wildness brilliantly. Dennis Hopper's character, Cesear, is a barkeeper who seems to be an ally and mentor to Mortensen, but it unfortunately leads to his demise.

How long can you run from your problems before they catch up with you again? How much are you willing to sacrifice to restrain a part of yourself?