What role do stereotypes play in this movie? How does Alexie deal with stereotypes?

Alexie speaks to the reality of Native American life..... the people, negating stereotypes in his film. In his own words, "In most films, Indians have been stoic. That's the stereotype of what Indians are supposed to be--stoic and alcoholic, depressed poor people. But in fact, Indians are the most joyous people in the world. The two funniest groups I've been around have been Indians and Jews. So I guess there's something to be said about the inherent humor of genocide."