Throughout movie history, Native Americans have been depicted thousands of times. Most of these have given stereotypes towards Native Americans. These stereotypes have caused a very inaccurate image towards Native Americans. Hollywood, though, did not create this image, it just put it into a bigger light. Since Europeans began settling in North America, Native Americans had been seen as, the ever popular, "savage" who was a blood-thirsty, animal-like, being, almost as if they weren't human. Filmmakers then took this image and put it on to the big screen. This misrepresentation was put out to millions of people including immigrants, who derived much of their knowledge of the United States from the movies. The beginning of twentieth century, when movies began gaining popularity, Native Americans began being depicted as the opposition in one of the most popular type of movies ever made-the Western (Bataille & Silet). .
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The appeal of the traditional Western is that it provided clear, simple solutions to comple x problems and solidified the triumph of the forces of white civilization. It was ready-made material for films, and the static image of the screen Indian was a readily exploitable commodity. Quickly and unambiguously recognizable in war paint and breechclout, astride his pinto pony, the Indian became the necessary fall guy for the hero; the impediment to progress overcome by the settlers, and finally on an emotional level, the repository of all those age-old, western European bugaboos - irrationality, bestiality, savagism. The American Indian became the ultimate Hollywood stereotype " easily understood and emotionally necessary " one which provided a universal theme by satisfying the universal fears and uncertainties of the audience. It was an enormously profitable combination (Bataille & Silet ). .
In these movies the Native American was either a noble savage or a vicious, bloodthirsty savage.
