Fancy Dance Parent Guide

Every year, over 5000 indigenous women go missing in America. Tawi, a Cherokee from the Seneca Cayuga Nation, is one of those women.

Her sister, Jax (Lily Gladstone) is desperate to find her, not only for her own sake but for that of Tawi’s 13-year-old daughter, Roki (Isabel Deroy-Olson). Jax knows that the best thing she can do for Roki is find her mother and either reunite them or provide closure.

Unfortunately, federal law enforcement is not demonstrating much zeal in the search for Tawi. Where the government proves to be proactive is in child welfare services. Determining that Jax’s criminal past makes her an unfit guardian, social workers seize Roki and send her to live with Jax’s white father and stepmother, Frank and Nancy (Shea Whigham and Audrey Wasilewski). The grandparents are well intentioned, but they don’t understand Roki’s consuming need to attend the upcoming powwow, where she hopes to find her mother.

When Jax appears outside Roki’s window in the middle of the night and offers her a trip to the powwow, the teen doesn’t hesitate. But the trip doesn’t go as expected, and Jax learns that federal law enforcement might not be too interested in tracing missing indigenous women, but there is no lack of zeal when a child is abducted from a home in the suburbs…

Fancy Dance is a complicated film. It raises painful issues, focusing on the fallout from the epidemic of missing and murdered indigenous women, while also addressing cultural issues around foster care for indigenous children and the danger of cultural erasure. The story also eschews easy answers. While Roki’s grief at being removed from her home is justified, it’s obvious that Jax is an unfit guardian. She has a record for dealing drugs, she leaves her niece alone while she gets drunk, and she shoplifts, steals gas, and steals cars. To make matters worse, she enlists Roki’s help in her thefts. And Jax’s decision to abduct her willing niece eventually draws Roki deeper into a world of crime. I can sympathize with Jax and Roki, I can be angry about the obstacles that stand in their way, but I simply can’t condone Jax’s reckless behavior or the extent to which she imperils her niece.

Audiences will note that the film comes with Restricted levels of negative content. There are almost four dozen profanities, including 21 sexual expletives, and several scenes where adults smoke, drink alcohol, and discuss dealing drugs. The characters also go to a strip club and although there is no explicit nudity, scantily clad women gyrate suggestively. There’s a scene where Jax pays a stripper for a lap dance, although it’s apparent that the women have a relationship outside of the club. The movie avoids graphic violence, but a main character shoots someone and although the shooting takes place off screen, the injured man is seen afterwards.

Despite the many drawbacks, Fancy Dance is a moving film. It demonstrates the power of family ties, the resilience that comes from cultural roots, and the strength we find in tradition. It is well cast, with strong performances from Lily Gladstone and Isabel Deroy-Olson. The script even provides a few moments of humor, and some sharp irony when a Homeland Security officer demands documents that will verify Jax’s immigration status. Having a white officer ask an indigenous woman about her immigration is a laugh-out-loud moment. More to the point, it’s a moment that will make viewers think – as will the entire film.