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Skins

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Skins (2002)

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Reviews Counted:57

Fresh:34

Rotten:23

Average Rating:5.9/10

Consensus: Though at times melodramatic, Skins' harsh depiction of life on the reservation is an eye-opener.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for language and violence

Runtime: 1 hr 34 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Sep 27, 2002 Limited

Synopsis: SKINS, based on the novel by Adrian C. Louis, is the impressive second feature of Native American director Chris Eyre (SMOKE SIGNALS). Filmed on location at the Pine Ridge Oglala Lakota reservation... SKINS, based on the novel by Adrian C. Louis, is the impressive second feature of Native American director Chris Eyre (SMOKE SIGNALS). Filmed on location at the Pine Ridge Oglala Lakota reservation in South Dakota, SKINS tells the story of Rudy (Eric Schweig), a policeman, and his older brother Mogie (Graham Greene of THE GREEN MILE), a jobless alcoholic. Mogie had once looked after his kid brother, but his experiences in Vietnam left him a bitter and broken man. Rudy frequently gives money to his mischievous older brother, which Mogie spends on beer. Frustrated with rampant alcoholism and crime on the "rez," Rudy becomes a vigilante. While Rudy thinks he's doing the right thing for his people, his extralegal activities lead to tragedy. SKINS is a powerful drama laced with acerbic humor. The film captures the harsh realities of Pine Ridge life with affection and wit, and breaks down negative stereotypes about Native Americans by portraying Mogie as a complex and ultimately very sympathetic human being. Eyre manages to make important points about contemporary Native American life without heavy handedness. His cast is very strong, particularly Greene, who delivers a phenomenal performance in this exceptionally moving and humane film. [More]

Starring: Eric Schweig, Graham Greene, Noah Watts, Lois Red Elk

Starring: Eric Schweig, Graham Greene, Noah Watts, Lois Red Elk, Gary Farmer, Michelle Thrush, Elaine Miles

Director: Chris Eyre

Director: Chris Eyre
Screenwriter: Jennifer D. Lyne
Producer: Jon Kilik, David Pomier
Composer: B.C. Smith
Studio: First Look

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Mar 25, 2003

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Skins

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1 - 20 (sorted by source)
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Eyre is on his way to becoming the American Indian Spike Lee.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
10/11/02
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
10/11/02
Arizona Republic

Though the aboriginal aspect lends the ending an extraordinary poignancy, and the story itself could be played out in any working class community in the nation.

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
12/02/02
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

For all its serious sense of purpose ... [it] finds a way to lay bare the tragedies of its setting with a good deal of warmth and humor.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
10/11/02
Janice Page
Janice Page
Boston Globe
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
10/12/02
Boston Phoenix

Greene delivers a typically solid performance in a role that is a bit of a departure from the noble characters he has played in the past, and he is matched by Schweig, who carries the film on his broad, handsome shoulders.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
06/05/02
Annlee Ellingson
Annlee Ellingson
Boxoffice Magazine

Whatever Eyre’s failings as a dramatist, he deserves credit for bringing audiences into this hard and bitter place.

Full Review Source: Capital Times (Madison, WI) | comment Comment
12/12/02
Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas
Capital Times (Madison, WI)

To see this movie is to understand why the faces on Mount Rushmore are so painful and galling to the first Americans.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
10/18/02
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
10/01/05
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

The movie becomes talky and preachy, making grand statements without any of the passion for storytelling that Smoke Signals had.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
09/27/02
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

Life on the rez is no picnic: this picture shows you why.

Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment Comment
06/17/02
Harvey S. Karten
Harvey S. Karten
Compuserve

It's a haunting indictment of a situation that has by and large been swept under the rug by Americans -- a stirring look at one man's impotent rage.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
11/07/02
Gary Dowell
Gary Dowell
Dallas Morning News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Dallas Observer | comment Comment
01/08/03
Bill Gallo
Bill Gallo
Dallas Observer

For a location-made movie offering scenes and characters a refreshing world apart from the usual tinsel, Skins does its subject proud.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
09/27/02
Denver Post

It may be tougher than Smoke Signals, but Skins lacks both the coherence and the crowd appeal that marked Eyre's earlier movie.

Full Review Source: Denver Rocky Mountain News | comment Comment
09/27/02
Robert Denerstein
Robert Denerstein
Denver Rocky Mountain News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It lacks the compassion, good-natured humor and the level of insight that made [Eyre's] first film something of a sleeper success.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
11/29/02
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

What makes Skins compelling is how it opens our eyes to conditions on the reservation.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
10/11/02
John Monaghan
John Monaghan
Detroit Free Press

Although mainstream American movies tend to exploit the familiar, every once in a while a film arrives from the margin that gives viewers a chance to learn, to grow, to travel.

Full Review Source: Detroit News | comment Comment
10/11/02
Susan Stark
Susan Stark
Detroit News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Despite all of its good intentions, Skins remains only skin deep.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
11/15/02
E! Online

A mild, reluctant, thumbs down.

Full Review Source: Ebert & Roeper | comment Comment
09/30/02
Richard Roeper
Richard Roeper
Ebert & Roeper
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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