''Grand Avenue'' is a 1996 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Daniel Sackheim Daniel Sackheim (born in 1962) is an American television and film director, producer, and photographer. Sackheim has produced and directed for ''The X-Files'', ''Law & Order'', ''House'' and ''NYPD Blue''. He also directed '' The Walking Dead,'' ...

and written by

Greg Sarris Gregory Michael Sarris (born February 12, 1952) is the Chairman of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria (since 1992), the Graton Rancheria Endowed Chair in Creative Writing and Native American Studies at Sonoma State University, where he t ...

. It is based on the 1994 novel ''Grand Avenue'' by Greg Sarris. The film stars

Irene Bedard Irene Bedard (born July 22, 1967) is an American actress, who has played mostly lead Native American roles in a variety of films. She is perhaps best known for the role of Suzy Song in the 1998 film '' Smoke Signals'', an adaptation of a Sherma ...

Tantoo Cardinal Tantoo Cardinal CM (born Rose Marie Cardinal; July 20, 1950) is a Canadian actress of Cree and Métis heritage. In 2009, she was made a member of the Order of Canada "for her contributions to the growth and development of Aboriginal performing ...

Eloy Casados Eloy Phil Casados (September 28, 1949 - April 19, 2016) was an American film, television and voice actor. He appeared in more than 20 films and 30 television series. He was best known for playing Ishi in the 1978 NBC television movie '' Ishi: ...

, Deena-Marie Consiglio,

Alexis Cruz Alexis Cruz (born September 29, 1974) is an American actor, known for his performances as Rafael in '' Touched by an Angel'' and as Skaara in ''Stargate'' and ''Stargate SG-1''. Biography Cruz was born in The Bronx of Puerto Rican descent. His m ...

, Diane Debassige,

Jenny Gago Jenny Gago (born September 11, 1953) is a Peruvian-American actress best known as Maria in ''Knots Landing'' (1984-1986), Maria in ''My Family'' (1995), Anaya in '' The Agency'' (2002-2003), and Det. Ochoa in '' Southland'' (2011). Life Gago ...

Cody Lightning Cody Lightning (born August 8, 1986) is a Cree actor from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.Kerry Benjoe, "Indigenous film world filled with people passionate about their art". ''Regina Leader-Post'', December 12, 2015. He is the son of Georgina Lightning ...

A Martinez Adolfo Larrue Martínez III (born September 27, 1948) is an American actor and singer with roles in the daytime soap operas '' Santa Barbara'', ''General Hospital'', ''One Life to Live'', ''The Bold and the Beautiful'', and ''Days of Our Lives' ...

, Simi Mehta,

August Schellenberg August Werner Schellenberg (July 25, 1936 – August 15, 2013) was a Canadian actor. He played Randolph in the first three installments of the ''Free Willy'' film series (1993–1997) as well as characters in ''Black Robe'' (1991), '' The New Wor ...

Sheila Tousey Sheila May Tousey (born June 4, 1959) is a Native American actress. Biography Born in Keshena, Wisconsin in 1959, Tousey is a stage and film actress of Menominee and Stockbridge-Munsee descent. She was raised on both Menominee and Stockbridge ...

and Sam Vlahos. The film premiered on HBO on June 30, 1996. The film is one of the only

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

films to feature an indigenous Native American lead role for an actress, played by

Menominee The Menominee (; mez, omǣqnomenēwak meaning ''"Menominee People"'', also spelled Menomini, derived from the Ojibwe language word for "Wild Rice People"; known as ''Mamaceqtaw'', "the people", in the Menominee language) are a federally recog ...

actress Tousey.

Plot

The film follows the members of a family who at the opening are kicked out of their stepfather's tribal reservation in California after he dies. They return to Grand Avenue in the South Park neighborhood in

Santa Rosa, California Santa Rosa ( Spanish for " Saint Rose") is a city and the county seat of Sonoma County, in the North Bay region of the Bay Area in California. Its estimated 2019 population was 178,127. It is the largest city in California's Wine Country and ...

, where many of their extended relatives and tribal members live. Once they have a house for rent, Mollie, the mother of the family struggles with finding and keeping a job and alcoholism. Daughters Justine and Alice try to keep the family together and take care of the youngest, their brother Sheldon. However, Justine begins to seek out company with local gang members, some of whom then turn on her for acting out sexually with their friends. Alice is the lone dependable member of the family and gravitates to her elder relatives for advice and support. Nellie is an old cousin who begins to teach Alice about traditional basket weaving and healing, giving her a boost of confidence. Nellie is also an advocate for the tribe's only land holding, a cemetery in danger of being developed. Her nephew Steven is married to Reyna and they live a nice suburban life with his son Raymond, who upon meeting her in school, is attracted to Justine. Steven slowly begins to realize that Mollie may have kept a secret from him when they dated as teenagers and after she moved away, as Raymond begins to bring Justine around. Meanwhile, Justine also befriends and becomes close to her cousin Jeanne, who is struggling with cancer and taken care of by her loving mother Anna. After being confronted by her kids, Mollie begins to work on her sobriety and eventually meets and begins a positive relationship with a fellow recovering alcoholic named Sherman. Nellie and Steven are able to gain support from tribal members to save the cemetery. Although Jeanne warns Justine about running around, she eventually meets a bad fate, but the family has worked to build up their support and the community as a whole is able to deal with the grief and accept the beauty of living in Grand Avenue.

Cast

as Reyna *

as Nellie *

as Albert *Deena-Marie Consiglio as Justine *

as Raymond *Diane Debassige as Alice *

as Anna *

as Sheldon *

as Steven *Simi Mehta as Jeanne *

as Sherman *

as Mollie *Sam Vlahos as Henry *Carmen Ahern as Evangeline *Delmar Billy as Delmar *Rita Carillo as Mona Bill *Patricia Garcia as Maria *Susan Harloe as Chair *

Shar Jackson Sharisse Jackson (born August 31, 1976) is an American actress and singer, best known for playing Niecy Jackson on the UPN sitcom ''Moesha''. She was crowned the winner of MTV reality show ''Celebrity Rap Superstar'' in 2007. Early life Jackson ...

as Carlene *Laurel Keith as Mrs. Anders *

Ron Kenoly Ron Kenoly (born December 6, 1944) is an American Christian worship leader, singer, and songwriter whose expressed mission is "to create an environment for the manifest presence of God". His musical style is one of jubilant praise and individu ...

as Dennis *Jack Kohler as Rick *

Zahn McClarnon Zahn Tokiya-ku McClarnon (born October 24, 1966) is an American actor known for his performances in the Western crime drama series '' Longmire'', the second season of '' Fargo'', and the second season of ''Westworld''. In 2022, he played the le ...

as Eric *Miguel Nájera as Clifford *Bruce Roberts as Dr. Parker *Anita Silva as Lena Bill *Norris Young as Kolvey *

Daniel Zacapa Daniel Zacapa (born July 19, 1951) is a Honduran-American movie actor. Zacapa played the role of Detective Taylor in the 1995 David Fincher film '' Seven''. He has worked steadily since, amassing a number of television credits and a role in '' Up ...

as Carlos

Awards

Earned the Best Picture at the 1996 American Indian Film Festival.

References

External links

* * * {{Daniel Sackheim 1996 television films Films about Native Americans Native American drama films Films directed by Daniel Sackheim 1996 drama films 1996 films HBO Films films American drama television films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films