Chief Dan Ray died in prison. Will Brook's testimony put him there although he only said that the Chief came to his parents house and argued, not that he saw him do anything wrong. The Chief's grandson, Eddie, keeps attacking Will in town over this, maybe trying to kill him.

Will's parents were part of a deal with the local Indians (First Nation) to develop some land or a building. First Nation took the money but later backed out of the deal, with Chief Dan Ray coming to their home and arguing with the parents. Parents were found murdered by Sarah Brooks, causing her mental distress.

Will's sister, Sarah Brooks, supposedly saw a monster when her parents were killed, and has been institutionalized all this time while Will lives like a hermit on a fishing boat. Indian Eddie kicks his butt every time he comes to town, so he stays away until he hears that Sarah got out and went missing.

Will's sister got out, moved in with a roommate and goes missing while her roommate is found murdered. Will comes to town to find his sister.

Detective Ivy, reinstated after two years from misconduct, works the cold cases of 30 women who have disappeared/murdered over the last ten years. Seeing Will initially as a suspect, Officer Joe Fletcher assures her that he is a good kid and to leave him alone. Ivy ends up working with Will on the cases.

John Hawkins, also institutionalized and believing something evil is coming, kidnapped two women and took them out to a cabin, washed them for an offering.

Thunderbird Legend, the great ianyacacan. Whale was scaring away salmon and the people were starving. They called upon the legend and it came and carried the whale away. Will's parents wanted to buy Indian land, and make it into a fishing a resort, so some believe that the Thunderbird was called to prevent them from losing their fish to the resort, resulting in the death of the Brooks.

We learn early on that if Will's pet snake isn't fed once a week, the snake will find a way out and feed itself. This mimics the creature in Ocean Falls, where Sarah and Jim Hawkins offer women as sacrifices to keep it contained. Will ends up killing Jim but after finding that Sarah is with Jim, offering the women to the Thunderbird creature, much like the snake and mouse, Will lies to Ivy that only Jim was there, and he never saw Sarah or the nurse, implying that the nurse was killed by the Thunderbird while Will watched.

Will is accepted into the First Nation, where Eddie finally accepts him, offering him a Thunderbird family mask. End scene makes it seem that maybe Sarah killed her parents over their resort situation, or that she kidnaps women to prevent the Thunderbird from coming out and killing many more like it killed her parents. I cannot tell. The acting was generally fine for the slow-burn feel but the more intense moments were awkward, like Ivy telling Will not to move when she first meets him, or when she points an shotgun and yells at a mannequin to drop it's sheet, or any time Will gets upset, and when Fletcher yells at Will to stop yelling. Too many points that didn't feel resolved or clarified. OK watch for killing time.

It seems like they were trying to tell a couple of different stories here. There's the whole kidnapping thing and then the Native American mythology angle and the hallucinations. I feel like they were trying to communicate something deep and profound, but it seriously misses the mark.

The cinematography is beautiful and the score is appropriate, the acting is very good. But so much of nothing happens for the first two-thirds of the film as the protagonist searches for his sister. The ending feels like it should be deeply meaningful, but it's just kinda "meh".

Not a bad movie for a rainy afternoon if can't decide between a movie and a nap, but you're leaning towards the nap.

A disfigured character trying to find reason in the search for his missing sister in an incredible landscape. Excellent plot, great photography, but some loose ends that could have been cleared up.

A sequel would help clarify some points, especially for those who are not connected with the mythology of the natives of this region of the planet.

I didn't know the work of Colten Wilke, an excellent actor who presents himself as a real native, it is possible to smell the fish he tears apart at the beginning of the film and all the anguish that the character demands. The cast is very good, they manage to give the tone of mystery that the plot needs.