The red road

Harold Jensen is a cop in the small, quiet town of Wallpole, New Jersey. Next to the town is the Ramapo mountain where the Lenape tribe live, or more accurately manage to live. A lot of them suffer from cancer, and money is rare, so many of them do small traffics. But in Wallpole, the life is peaceful. Harold has a beautiful wife, Jean, and two beautiful teenage daughters, Rachel and Kate.

Jean lost her twin brother twenty years ago, and she still blames her high-school Lenape ex-boyfriend, Philip, for it. So when Rachel begins a love affair with a Lenape boy, Junior, her parents try to stop it. That’s when Philip returns to town after spending years in prison for drug trafficking. Very upset, Jean drives at night to find her daughter. On the road, she hits a boy, but convinces herself that it was an animal and leaves. Harold make the choice to destroy evidence and to cover up his wife’s guilt. Unfortunately, Philip knows what happened and blackmails him.

From this moment on, everything goes sideways. Jean’s pathology, schizophrenia, becomes evident. Rachel must choose between her family and her new love. The fates of Harold and Philip become closely intertwined. As suspicions about the drama arise, tensions between the communities become tangible. The cop and the ex-con will soon discover that many people hide dark secrets, and thats the lines between right and wrong are more blurry than it seems.

A fine line between right and wrong, wise or mad choices

The scenario is good, as is the casting! The only thing that may have confused some viewers is that the series struggles to choose between the tone of an action series (which it is) and the slower pace of a psychological drama series.

Initially aired on Sundance TV, The series has the merit of highlighting two topics that are rarely discussed.

For once, an Indian tribe has a leading place in the plot, its struggles are well described. As the actors are obviously from various origins (Jason Momoa being himself a super mixed race man!), the series wisely depicts the Lenape as a tribe which brings together Indians of various origins.

Even more rare, the series explores the theme of schizophrenia without prejudice. And it is not a dangerous maniac who has this illness, but a loving mother.

I bingewatched the series, which is very interesting in many ways. It was cancelled after two seasons, but it is enjoying renewed success ten years later on Netflix. If the actors’ now busy schedules allow it, a sequel could be produced, not before 2028 though.

About the title :

‘The Red Road is a phrase frequently used by Natives signifying a deep commitment to living life in the best way possible — with an intrinsic respect for others, oneself, and creation and a dedication to worshipping the Creator. It also means turning one’s back on addiction to drugs, alcohol and anything else that may damage yourself or others. In Christian culture, The Red Road similarly represents the blood-stained road that led Jesus to the cross after having lived His best life and given his own life for those of his followers’ : credits The red road website about native americans’s culture and history.

2 seasons, 12 episodes (45 mn), 2014-2015 then 2028 ?, on Netflix

WITH :

• Natives indians: Jason Momoa (Frontier, Game of Thrones) as Phillip Kopus, Tamara Tunie as Marie Van Der Veen, Kiowa Gordon as Junior Van Der Veen, Gary Farmer as Mac, Lisa Bonet as Sky, Zahn McClarnon as Mike Parker, Wes Studi as Chief Levi Gall
• Jensen’s family and white people: Martin Henderson as Harold Jensen, Julianne Nicholson (Paradise) as Jean, Allie Gonino as Rachel, Annalise Basso as Kate, Tom Sizemore as Jack Kopus, Antoni Corone as Captain Warren, Mike Farrell as David Rogers