'Dances with Wes Studi' Native American movies of the 90s

Of course when it comes to writing a history of movies about the frontier one has to examine the rush of films - mostly commercially successful about Indian subjects in the 90s. Dances With Wolves (1990) set the tone and was of course a smash but it wasn't really so much as a new type of western where cliches are left out but a whole new set of them to add to the old ones. Wes Studi's Pawnee in 'Wolves' are just the same as the old Hollywood indians albeit with better make up and costumes. The bringing in of spiritual themes was a bit of a new add-on for these movies - usually accompanied by some sort of flute. This could be viewed as a further intrusion by Hollywood into Indian culture but it certainly gave Indian actors some work through the 90s if the lead roles usually still went to a white guy.
Some white guy - Daniel Day-Lewis hit the big time with the next success in the genre Last of the Mohicans (1992) though even less revisionist in theme than 'Dances' with the original 1936 hit script providing the story and characters. The Indians looked better but they were still either noble and good or wicked and evil - with poor old Wes Studi having to leer and sneer again. The success of this saw another leatherstocking movie The Pathfinder (1996) with Kevin Dillon in the title role and a tv series 'Hawkeye' (1994) that used stock footage from 'Mohicans' in the credit sequence and an otherwise new set in Canada. It isn't worth tracking down.
The year 1993 saw Wes playing Geronimo in Walter Hill and John Milius' Geronimo; an American legend which is in my opinion one of the best 90s native movies.
Canada had a bash doing 'Black Robe' (1991) set in the early missionary days of New France and went for a slightly different feel than the blockbusterish Wolves and Mohicans but it still treaded with lead boots over the spiritual themes in a way that wasn't going to win any friends in the First Nations.
Other entries in this genre are Squanto (1994) The Broken Chain (1993) about Joseph Brant and Tecumseh The Last Warrior from 1995. There is a footnote to the genre with Wes Studi once again - and why not? - Mallick's New World(2005) was lile a late arrival but nevertheless an attractive one. Let's hope we haven't seen the end of Indian movies.