Saul Indian Horse lives with his family in Northern Canada in the early 1960s. His parents, survivors of a residential school and having lost a daughter to the system, take Saul and his brother to the woods to live with his grandmother. The family tries hard to hide from the government agents but their plan fails when Saul's brother is taken by the "white people" to a residential school. The brother eventually escapes the school but soon after dies from tuberculosis. Saul's parents are devastated and leave Saul alone with his grandmother who in turn freezes to death trying to protect the boy. Saul is then also taken by the government and placed in St. Jerome's Indian Residential School where he witnesses the physical and emotional punishment of his fellow classmates, often resulting in their death.
A source of hope is ignited in Saul when a priest at the school introduces him and a few other boys to the game of ice hockey. An ice rink is built at the school and the new players practice day after day. Saul, being the youngest of the boys, works the hardest and is the most determined to succeed. He has a natural talent for hockey and he sees the essence of the game like no other. He soon begins to outplay the oldest members and is offered positions on many different teams around the province, allowing him to leave the residential school for good.
Hockey leads Saul into a life of promise and hope but his devastating past prevents him from accomplishing his full potential. The racist fans of the game and his lonely course of alcoholism and defeat lead Saul to truly renew and discover himself as a person. Saul's character builds and falls as he tries to overcome many obstacles in Indian Horse.
A source of hope is ignited in Saul when a priest at the school introduces him and a few other boys to the game of ice hockey. An ice rink is built at the school and the new players practice day after day. Saul, being the youngest of the boys, works the hardest and is the most determined to succeed. He has a natural talent for hockey and he sees the essence of the game like no other. He soon begins to outplay the oldest members and is offered positions on many different teams around the province, allowing him to leave the residential school for good.
Hockey leads Saul into a life of promise and hope but his devastating past prevents him from accomplishing his full potential. The racist fans of the game and his lonely course of alcoholism and defeat lead Saul to truly renew and discover himself as a person. Saul's character builds and falls as he tries to overcome many obstacles in Indian Horse.