Six stories based on Blackfoot urban legends are told in Tales from the Rez. Elder Uncle Randolf (Charles Duck Chief) introduces a series of chilling tales based around the Blackfoot reservation. In “Queen's Hotel,” recovered alcoholic Eddie (Eugene Brave Rock) tries to save the soul of his brother Jacob (Shane Ghostkeeper) from a dark cowboy (Travis Friesen); In “Grave Consequences,” stoners Savana (Shayla Stonechild) and Dee (Laura Royal) steal from a grave, causing spooky occurrences; In “A Giddy Goat,” a Goatman (Cody Lightning) and his friend Cecil try to score at a Halloween party; In “Something in the Water,” Savannah joins friends on a camping trick, where they awaken angry water spirits; In “Taxi Me to Hell,” cousins Wendall (Leonard Provost) and Cecil pick up a hitchhiker with sinister intentions; Finally, in “Sandhills,” Jacob finds the legendary trickster Napi (Chris Crowshoe), who helps him heal his inner child.
Tales from the Rez Synopsis
Tales from the Rez is an Indigenous horror anthology written and directed by Blackfoot filmmaker Trevor Solway. Originally produced as a streaming series for APTN lumi, Tales from the Rez consists of six segments introduced with a dry sense of humour by the ballcap-wearing host Uncle Randolf, who gets increasingly annoyed about having to tell these stories for free. The stories are influenced by Blackfoot urban legends, featuring everything from zombies to water spirits to a trickster.
My Thoughts on Tales from the Rez
The individual stories of Tales from the Rez run between 12-20 minutes in length, with this feature-length edit packaging together into an approximately 96-minute film, with a simple fade to black used to transition between the different episodes. With the exception of a handful of characters that appear in more than one, each of the stories of Tales from the Rez stands as its own standalone narrative, with the only common elements being the opening and closing comments by Uncle Randolf.
