Robin's Hood

Group of Seven Inches borrows from the diaries of 19th century painters of “Indians,” George Catlin and Paul Kane, turning their dismissive writings on the “romantic savage” upside down and inside out. Miss Chief Eagle Testickle (the outrageous alter ego of Cree artist Kent Monkman), forces innocent naked white men to become her figure models, seduces them with whiskey, and when she’s done with them, dresses them up as more “authentic” examples of the “European male.” Shot on the grounds of the McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Kleinburg, Ontario, Group of Seven Inches subverts the subjectivity and authority of colonial art history and everything else it can get its hands on.

Famed romantic filmmaker Frederick Curtis is shooting a film about Geronimo just outside the Long Horn Saloon. Frustrated with the unconvincing performances of his lead actor, he pulls another young sexy Cree man into the role. Jealousy ensues as Curtis alternately gushes over the two Cree boys as he manipulates them into broad Hollywood caricatures. A “Lonesome Rider” intercedes, teasing the action to a tragic twist, which forces the boys to take control of Curtis’ film.