Underrated Val Kilmer ’90s Thriller ‘Thunderheart’ Makes Its Way To 4K
by David Lewis
1992’s underseen Thunderheart is the sort of mid-budget, star-driven, political thriller that studios no longer make (or at least, no longer make with theaters in mind). The neo-western mystery stars the late, great Val Kilmer, and is making its 4K UHD debut in early 2026.
Kilmer plays Ray Levoi, a cocky young FBI agent who’s dispatched to a South Dakota Indian reservation to help solve a murder. Encountering a veteran FBI agent (Sam Shepard) and irascible local sheriff (Graham Greene), Levoi soon finds himself wrapped up in a deep-seated conspiracy involving government corruption, systemic racism, and even secrets about his own forgotten part-Sioux heritage.
Directed by Michael Apted — who also helmed the excellent, similarly-themed documentary Incident at Oglala — Thunderheart boasts a uniformly excellent cast including Chief Ted Thin Elk, Fred Ward, Sheila Tousey, and John Trudell, and even includes a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo from David Crosby.
Thunderheart arrives on 4K on January 13th.
