POC I'm Watching: Nathaniel Arcand

"I am my own.

"I stay because it is my will to stay.

"And until they get you, remember that it was by a redskin's will that you breathed your stink that long."

~ the Hunter

I had the opportunity to sit down and rewatch Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning (2004) this weekend.  To me, a horror movie is best enjoyed at home on a lazy Sunday afternoon.  This time, I lent a more critical eye, in addition to drooling over Cree actor Nathaniel Arcand.

This movie gets some really high marks from Moi.  It's a low-budget B-Movie horror film in which everything from the clothing to the setting to the music was very well done.  Amateur filmmakers would do well to study this film and watch the featurettes.  The casting was also handled well, as Mr. Arcand here is one of the top three actors billed.

His characterization was very well done, which surprised me...until I remembered that this was a Canadian production, not American.  The writers and directors knew to treat his character with all manner of respect (though I would've preferred a different ending, of course).  In the film, Arcand plays the no-nonsense, this-is-my-land, you-can-go-fuck-yourself Hunter (he refuses to share his name).  He gets an abundance of close-ups, and majestic shots which evoke his power and prowess.  He's fluently bilingual, switching effortlessly from English to Cree and back.  He sugarcoats nothing for no one and is nobody's house Negro.  In fact, he has this attitude of, "Don't get it twisted.  You're here because I allow you to be here.  You're alive because I choose to let you live" - and he never fails to bluntly remind people of that fact.

For the newbies, this is a werewolf film; the Hunter surprises the audience (well, at least Moi) by explaining that the Wendigo was not, in fact, indigenous to the New World.  He states the English and French brought it with them, along with their other diseases.  Ironically, even with all their guns, the Europeans are helpless fending off the Wendigo.  Meanwhile, main man here drops them like flies with arrows, knives, and hatchets.

And did I mention he's gorgeous?  His screencaps make exceptional desktop backgrounds.  I've currently got a select few on rotation on my computer.  Click to enlarge:

My favorite.

Wendigo History 101.

Moan trigger.

Essentials for the bunk.