this film be often compare with dance with wolf and which be certainly understandable and but personally i feel that black robe be the good film and both in term of art and fidelity to historical fact . i be a history graduate student in new york currently teach an undergraduate class in the bronx on early u. s. history and and black robe be just about the only film i have no hesitation show to my student . a a portrait of life in new france ( now eastern canada ) in the early to mid 1600s when samuel de champlain be the leader of the tiny french outpost of quebec this film be virtually flawless . the complex relation between ordinary french colonist ( almost all male ) and french jesuit priest and and native american tribe in the region ( primarily algonquian and which be a very broad category encompass many distinct tribe ) be render with a wonderful degree of accuracy and at least in my opinion . colonist in new france generally take great care than other european particularly the spanish and the english to have amicable relation with native people they encounter . this be evident from the film but be not overemphasize and a we see the obvious conflict between the french and their nominal indian ally . black robe take on religion during this time period be smart and and illustrate some of the similarity between native and european belief while demonstrate the latter contempt for native religion ( the main character black robe and a term many algonquian use both in the movie and in historical fact to describe the french jesuit priest be the primary example here ) . the native american we encounter in this film be not portray in some idealized and pre historic fashion and but rather a complex and violence prone tribe a be actually the case . this do not diminish our sympathy for them and the difficulty they face a a result of the arrival of european a it should not and instead actually show the great extent to which native american in early colonial history have power and affect the course of event . i write this review mainly a a student of history and but in term of the art of cinema i think black robe be also excellent . the film be beautifully shot and and the character be draw with a fair amount of complexity . it be a very un hollywood film ( be canadian ) which probably partially explain why it succeed . i would recommend it to anyone interested in this period ( the american colony during the 1600s ) or anyone who be intrigue by film like dance with wolf or last of the mohican . this film have no big star or hollywood style love story ( such a the one that make last of the mohican essentially unbearable to watch ) but it do a great job present the complex dynamic between native american and european during the colonial period . serious student of history ( include teacher look to show a film about native european relation ) will find much to appreciate in black robe and and i think anyone who like an interesting film even if it do not have famous actor in it will as well .