“The exceptional documentary Holy Man: The USA vs. Douglas White tells the haunting tale of White … it’s Holy Man‘s gorgeous visual palette, augmented by an uncommonly effective series of reenactments … that truly elevates this absorbing effort.”
—Gary Goldstein, “Review: ‘Holy Man’ explores complex issues of racial bias,” Los Angeles Times (August 16, 2012)
“Holy Man: The USA vs. Douglas White illustrates complex issues through the story of an individual … Narrated by Martin Sheen, the film puts White’s legal battle in the context of historical and ongoing racism against Native Americans that has resulted in legacies of poverty, alcoholism, and the highest suicide rate in the country. It’s engrossing but infuriating viewing.”
—Earnest Hardy, “This Year’s DocuWeeks Festival Makes a Strong Case for Real Life,” Village Voice (August 1, 2012)
“poetic … haunting … turned the government’s case inside out”
—Indian Country Today
“As a Christian, I am vowed by my baptism to be aware of and responsive to injustice. As a bishop of the Church and a professor of theology, I am well aware of the historic injustice practiced by my faith against Native American people. As a Native elder myself and follower of our traditional ways, I am committed to healing the spiritual wounds inflicted by this continuing injustice. For all three of these reasons, I urge every person . . . to watch Holy Man: The USA vs. Douglas White. This film weaves together the threads of conflict between two religions, the tragic history of colonial oppression, the pervasive power of racism, and the ongoing suppression of Native culture by a government long corrupted by its own colonial legacy. Holy Man is a film about Douglas White, but it is a story as old as Jesus. It is an ancient narrative, acted out over centuries around the world, but it is as contemporary as the terror that haunts our daily news.”
—Steven Charleston