Navajo (1952)

Academy Awards, USA 1953

Nominated Oscar	Best Cinematography, Black-and-White Virgil Miller
	Best Documentary, Features Hall Bartlett

Lippert Pictures
Directed by Norman Foster
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb Wikipedia
(YouTube)

A young boy and his family move to a remote canyon in the hopes of a better life. His adopted "grandfather", really just a friend of the family, teaches him about the history of the Navajo. After his grandfather dies, the boy goes to town to get help with the body, but instead is put into a local school against his will. The boy grows to resent everyone around him and runs off at the first opportunity. He hides in the same canyon where his family once lived, pursued by a couple of good-intentioned teachers. The melodramatics don't always click, and neither does the forced narration by the boy, but it is beautifully photographed on spectacular Arizona locations.