Directed by and starring Kevin Costner, the epic about a disillusioned Civil War lieutenant who travels west and befriends a tribe of Sioux Indians clocked in at three hours long, came in millions of dollars over budget, and included a cast full of unknown Native American actors speaking a language most audiences had never heard. On the 25 th anniversary of its release, here are a few things you might not know about Dances With Wolves. Once finished, Blake submitted Dances with Wolves , to numerous publishers, all of whom passed on his manuscript.
Finally, after more than 30 rejections, a small publisher called Fawcett accepted it. Turned down by American studios, Costner looked abroad for help, eventually securing startup funds from a handful of foreign investors.
Costner covered the overage out of his own pocket. Before Blake began working on Dances with Wolves , Costner tried to get work for his friend by arranging numerous interviews with studio representatives. But as Costner told Tim Ferriss on a recent podcast, Blake spoiled every opportunity by arguing with the reps. The two became increasingly at odds, culminating in a physical confrontation that had Costner pinning Blake against a wall.
Blake stayed with Costner while writing Dances with Wolves , all the while pestering Costner to read his work in progress. Costner refused, and Blake quickly wore out his welcome.
Dances With Wolves
He called Costner asking for money, so Costner mailed him a sleeping bag and a portable stove. After months of refusing, Costner finally gave in and was stunned. But each of them had parts they wanted to cut that Costner considered crucial. This was admirable, considering most Westerns made Native American actors spout their lines in English. But there was one problem: Few people could speak Lakota, much less translate it.
He sent the script to her and got it back three weeks later, fully translated.
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Since none of the actors spoke Lakota, Costner brought Leader Charge onto the set for further guidance and even offered her a speaking role as Pretty Shield, the wife of Ten Bears. Leader Charge initially declined, saying she needed to return to work. So Costner called up the president of the college and got her stay extended. In addition to filming at more than 30 locations throughout South Dakota and Wyoming, the shooting script called for buffalo, three dozen teepees, horses, two wolves, and a small army of Native American extras.
That really is a herd of buffalo storming across the prairie. The crew got only one shot at filming the stampede each day, since the animals had to first be rounded up and then, once they started running, would go for miles before stopping. Capturing the sequence took eight days and involved 20 wranglers, a helicopter, and 10 pickup trucks with mounted cameras. Filming required a few domesticated buffalo for close-up shots. Costner is capable of permeating certain sequences with lyricism. Pity the ending is horrible.
It has greatness in it. It also has some distinct, even major flaws. But it's rather easy to get swept up in it.
Costner's half-hearted media apology to the Indian nation for the atrocities committed against them in the name of unrivaled, unapologetic, rapacious greed for which the people of One Nation Under God have made good - not makes for a nice pass of time even if the lead characters are ironically Caucasians though adopted by Native Americans. Many people think the Oscar for Best Picture should have gone to GoodFellas; I might have preferred that also, but don't discredit this film for that reason. This is a great film! Nominated for 12 Academy Awards and winner of 7, this classic film is a must see!
Sometimes, as with Crash, their mistake is obvious and the outcry is instant; on other occasions, as with Citizen Kane, both the Academy and the public have taken time to see the error of their ways. And then we have Dances with Wolves, which beat Goodfellas to the big gong to deny Martin Scorsese his Oscar for a third time. While not as crass a mistake as the others, time has not been kind to Kevin Costner's debut, which now seems long on principle but short on actual story. The obvious way to prey on Dances with Wolves would be to attack Costner's subsequent career.
His later efforts behind the camera have left a lot to be desired, with Waterworld running hugely over budget and The Postman being the dictionary definition of tedious. His acting style and drawling delivery suggest a man who takes himself far too seriously, rivalling only Nicolas Cage for stony-faced absurdity. But a quick glance at his back catalogue reveals a slightly more complicated picture. Lest we forget, Costner was once an admired and popular actor, who acquitted himself perfectly well in No Way Out, The Untouchables and Field of Dreams.
And for all the gaping flaws in his directorial efforts, you could never accuse him of going in with anything but the very best intentions.
COLLECTIONS
The most obvious quality of Dances with Wolves is that it is very even-handed towards its subject matter. It approaches the relationship between Native Americans and American soldiers with the same restraint and intelligence that Clint Eastwood applied to the subject of revenge in Unforgiven. You also have to applaud Costner's ambition as a director. There are few actors, let alone big stars, who would have taken on such a big project first time out. Costner was shooting in mostly external locations for four months, including several elaborate sequences with hundreds of real horses and buffalo.
Costner was prepared to take risks with Dances with Wolves, and that deserves praise regardless of whether the film works or not. A further point of admiration comes in Costner's decision to have much of the dialogue spoken in the Lakota language. But it also proves that the respect for the different cultures within the film is genuine, not just a device for boosting Costner's artistic standing.
This remains the case even after Russell Means pointed out the flawed translations, which left all the men in the film speaking in the female Sioux dialect. In terms of the admiration it generates, Dances with Wolves is in the same league as Battle of Britain in terms of pure good will. But like Battle of Britain, this admiration does not guarantee good drama, and little by little Costner's film begins to look earnest to the point of being dul.
It ends up stuck halfway between Unforgiven and Heaven's Gate, being neither as gripping nor elegiac as the former, nor as wretchedly pretentious as the latter.
Dances with Wolves () - IMDb
It never becomes as well-meaningly dull as Battle of Britain, but its flaws in terms of pacing and emotion cannot help but prey on our minds. The first 45 minutes of Dances with Wolves are very slow and very portentous. Costner is clearly pulling out all the stops to make us admire and believe in the character of John Dunbar, but he ends up both trying too hard and not enough. The opening battle sequence features Costner attempting suicide by riding straight at the Confederate front line with his arms held out in a messianic pose - a decision which results in sniggers or sneers rather than feelings of empathy.
In the various scenes that follow, where Dunbar is sent out to the frontier, too much effort is expended trying to express his bravery and not enough made on showing him as a rounded human being. When I reviewed Days of Summer, I argued that the presence of a narrator in any kind of film creates an element of certainty which can sometimes work against dramatic tension. In the case of Dances with Wolves, one could argue it is necessary since the diary is integral to the later stages of the plot. But while it is partially justified on a narrative level, Costner's delivery of it is frankly third-rate.
His readings feel rushed and increasingly desperate, as he tries to convey the gravity of the situation without much success. The narration aside, there is precious little about Dances with Wolves which is rushed. At just over 3 hours long 4 hours in its Director's Cut , comparisons with Heaven's Gate are unavoidable; the project was even nicknamed 'Kevin's Gate' after the production delays were leaked to the press. Costner's film is nowhere near as baggy as Heaven's Gate, let alone as self-serving, but it is every bit as drawn out, especially in its final act. Had Kevin gone through with a pair of scissors and lost even 30 seconds from every scene, it would have made a world of difference.
The biggest problem with Dances with Wolves is that it constantly tells us how important the events are without doing enough to show us why this is the case. There are many beautiful or poignant images throughout, from the hundreds of dead buffalo lying on the plains to the couple's departure from the winter camp. But these images don't carry the weight that they should because we haven't invested enough in the characters to make them any more than pretty compositions.
The film is so respectful towards the Sioux that it is almost hesitant to scratch the surface and ask the difficult questions about how their society works, such as the relationship between fathers and sons, and the position of women. This is understandable up to a point, considering the negative depiction of Native Americans in Hollywood throughout the 20th century - a fact which, if you believe Marlon Brando, led him to turn down his second Oscar. But you would think that if Costner were brave enough to embark on something of such scale and ambition, the last thing he would be worried about was mildly offending people.
Fortunately, the film does pick up after the first 45 minutes and has moments where the action and characters do take flight. Many of these scenes find Costner willing to let his hair down, whether it's dancing with Two Socks around the camp fire or giving audiences a clear view of his naked bottom. It is hard not to get swept up in the chases scene across the plains, diligently matched by John Barry's stirring score. And some of the lighter moments within the camp help us to relax as well; when Dunbar interrupts Kicking Bird's nearby lovemaking, Graham Greene's facial expression says it all.
The romantic aspect of Dances with Wolves is well-played for an epic, if only because the central relationship develops at a reasonable rate. We don't get that agonising sensation as in Out of Africa, where we know the characters are meant to kiss and are begging them to get on with it. The scenes of Stands with a Fist interpreting between Dunbar and Kicking Bird are well-played, serving their purpose while conveying the sexual tension between the characters. Their relationship conveys the conflicted identity of the central characters and the possibility of future harmony between the nations.
Dances with Wolves is ultimately a very middling film. It's too long to adequately serve its story, but not so long that we lose all patience with it. Its respect for its characters undercuts the drama, but not to the extent that we sit there drifting into a coma. And its direction is uninvolving, but not in an artsy, egotistical way. Calling it an average or ordinary film is to belie Costner's ambition, but any higher praise is impossible in light of its flaws.
It remains significant but not stirring, admirable but not engaging, important but not profound. Probably the best western made, only 'Mohicans' comes close to this and only 'Apocalypto' recently challenges it.
This is a heart warming, emotional, tense and brutal look at life within an Indian tribe and how they try to exsist against the American military with the help of turned soldier Costner. The look and feel of the whole film is absolutely perfect, faultless, the musical score is one of the best and most moving in a film that I can remember whilst the acting is nothing short of perfect from virtually everyone involved including Costner. Nothing has really beaten this film in terms of accuracy and honesty, its amazing what they achieved, even the animals are sublime. Most of the film is in native tongue 'Apocalypto' beats this in the fact its all in native tongue which was darn impressive and the locations used are actually the correct real historic locations, not many sets used.
Its a perfect film, romance, action, courage, revenge, tears, its very much an emotional roller coaster, but well worth it, you must see this before you die, its an actual history lesson. More Top Movies Trailers Forums.
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