The Trail of Tears: Cherokee Legacy

In this movie, presented like a documentary, we learn volumes about the Cherokee nation at the time of Jackson's Indian Removal Act. We learn for example that the Cherokee were willing to comply with the Whites' way of life : even though I knew it that some of them had turned into farmers, I was surprised to see them dressed like the Whites. The film focuses on the excruciating and perilous journey from Georgia to Oklahoma. It also dwells on the politicians' contradictory statements. Indeed, the Cherokee were denied the right to keep on tilling their lands after they had been prompted to do so. Definitely, you must see it!

This video is more a documentary with historical perspectives than a movie for entertainment. It was very informative and I honestly enjoyed watching it. I highly recommend it for the information it presented and as a teacher, I have used it in the classroom.

I am a Cherokee from Oklahoma now living in Colorado. In this movie, what you will get is not a classic western but the tragic truth about a people that regardless of their ability to adapt, to welcome their distant neighbours and indeed to welcome and to even embrace progress clearly displaying this adaptability to change were nevertheless out of greed driven out of their own homeland and nearly driven to extinction only to once again, adapt to change and once again, many are succeeding.

Liked how the speaking documentaries were interspersed with the re-created scenes. My favorite parts were Wes Studi's as he spoke in the Cherokee language (subtitled in English). It just added authenticism to this work. Also, the fact that different well-known actors were the voices at various parts of the film. Didn't know that James Earl Jones was half Cherokee, and he did a nice job as well. I plan to share my copy with friends and family. Definitely a story Americans should know, especially those of us living in/around Appalachia.

I used this video as an instructional supplement for my classroom unit on westward expansion and initial confrontations between the nascent United States and Native nations. The information presented is detailed and clearly presented. The use of the Cherokee language by Wes Studi really drives home to urban high school students that this culture is still very much alive. There are some production issues that detract from the overall story such as during the recreation of the Trail of Tears the participants clearly have tennis shoes on and from a teaching vantage it hurts the credibility of the film as visual literature. I will be using the film again because it is an excellent product.