Fancy Dance review: Lily Gladstone’s star shines brightly over complex but sentimental Native American drama
Apple TV+, Cert 15A
![thumbnail: Lily Gladstone is excellent in 'Fancy Dance'](https://cdn.statically.io/img/focus.independent.ie/thumbor/K52bblJA_BFzZv0i88UsHhNWzoA=/273x0:3249x1984/160x107/prod-mh-ireland/de321938-5ace-4f5e-bc39-c00fc8ff9de8/4ee02064-d3e1-4e75-b7aa-c963e353e053/de321938-5ace-4f5e-bc39-c00fc8ff9de8.jpg)
![thumbnail: Isabel Deroy-Olson and Lily Gladstone in 'Fancy Dance'](https://cdn.statically.io/img/focus.independent.ie/thumbor/3eDXrNJz9NOcFh6Ro70hD5-F7Nc=/0x0:3237x2158/160x107/prod-mh-ireland/2849bb38-78bb-435b-9604-bfc89b513206/67ee11b9-b47c-4359-a957-5f86b36ab75e/2849bb38-78bb-435b-9604-bfc89b513206.jpg)
The standout performer of Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, Lily Gladstone delivers another sensational turn in this chewy, complex drama that – among other things – sheds light on the criminal mistreatment of indigenous women in contemporary America.
Gladstone is Jax, a native of Oklahoma’s Seneca-Cayuga Nation Reservation, and a stand-in guardian for her teenage niece Roki (Isabel DeRoy-Olson). The child’s mother is missing, and the authorities don’t seem to care.
They are, however, interested in Jax’s past and whether she’s a suitable minder for Roki.
Isabel Deroy-Olson and Lily Gladstone in 'Fancy Dance'
Everything goes sideways after Jax’s white father Frank (Shea Whigham) re-enters the equation, forcing Jax and her niece to hit the road in search of answers.
There is only one way this story will end for our unfortunate protagonist – but first-time feature filmmaker Erica Tremblay spins a sensitive, soulful tale from a predictable premise.
It’s a little like an old-fashioned TV movie – shaky and sentimental in places – but Gladstone is in marvellous form, and this well-intentioned feature is lucky to have her.
Three stars
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