Main Cast: Lou Diamond Phillips, Fred Ward, Gary Farmer, John Karlen, Lance Baker
Release Year: 1993
Country: US
Run Time: 111 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Noted documentary filmmaker Errol Morris made his dramatic feature debut with this story about murder and other dirty dealings on an American Indian reservation. Recent college graduate Jim Chee (Lou Diamond Phillips) has just taken a job with the Navajo Reservation Police in Arizona, where he helps keep the peace with his superior Joe Leaphorn (Fred Ward) on land earmarked for joint use by Navajo and Hopi tribes. Cowboy Dashee (Gary Farmer), a sheriff from the Hopi law enforcement group, discovers a decaying and unidentified body in the desert, an event he thinks may be linked to a recent robbery at the reservation's trading post. The shop's Hopi manager, Jake West (John Karlen), is convinced that Joe Musket, a Navajo drug dealer and ne'er-do-well, is responsible, and as Chee and Leaphorn investigate the murder, the robbery, and a mysterious plane crash, they find themselves drawn into a web of corruption, prejudice, and deceit. Dark Wind was based on a novel by noted crime author Tony Hillerman. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
The Dark Wind is the second Tony Hillerman novel to feature Officer Jim Chee. Recent college graduate Jim Chee has just taken a job with the Navajo Tribal Police in Arizona, where he helps keep the peace with his superior Captain Largo on land earmarked for joint use by the Navajo and the Hopi. Cowboy Dashee, a deputy sheriff from the Hopi law enforcement group, discovers a decaying and unidentified body in the desert, and thinks that the body may be linked to a recent robbery at the reservation's trading post. The shop's Hopi manager, Jake West, is convinced that Joe Musket, a Navajo drug dealer, is responsible for the killing. Chee and Leaphorn investigate the murder, the robbery, and a mysterious plane crash.
