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Dances with Wolves

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Dances with Wolves
Directed byKevin Costner
Written byMichael Blake
Produced byJim Wilson
Kevin Costner
StarringKevin Costner
Mary McDonnell
Graham Greene
Rodney Grant
CinematographyDean Semler
Edited byNeil Travis
Music byJohn Barry
Distributed byOrion Pictures
Release date
November 9 1990
Running time
181 Mins
(Theatrical)
236 Mins
Director's Cut
Country United States
LanguagesEnglish
Lakota
Pawnee
BudgetUS$19,000,000 (estimated)
Box office$424,208,848

Dances with Wolves is a 1990 epic film which tells the story of a United States Lieutenant who travels to the American Frontier to find a military post. He eventually befriends a local Sioux tribe.[1] Developed by director/star Kevin Costner over 5 years, the film (released November 9, 1990) has high production values[1] and won 7 Academy Awards (1990) and the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Drama.[2] Much of the dialogue is in the Lakota language with English subtitles, unusual for a film at the time of its release. It was shot in South Dakota and Wyoming.

In 2007, Dances with Wolves was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[3]

Synopsis

The film opens during a US Civil War battle. Union Army Officer Lieutenant John J. Dunbar learns that his injured leg is to be amputated. Seeing the plight of fellow soldiers with amputated legs, Dunbar attempts suicide by riding a horse across the line of fire between the opposing Union and Confederate positions. His action has the unexpected effect of rallying his comrades, who storm the Confederate positions.

After the ensuing battle, an experienced general's surgeon saves Dunbar's leg. The commanding officer names Dunbar a hero, awards him Cisco, the horse who carried him in battle, and offers Dunbar his choice of posting.

Dunbar requests a transfer to the western frontier. After meeting with Major Fambrough, (Maury Chaykin) who has slipped into delusions of grandeur (apparently believing he is a king and Dunbar a medieval knight), he is paired with a drayage teamster named Timmons (Robert Pastorelli), who conveys Dunbar to his post. After the departure of Timmons and Dunbar, Fambrough commits suicide with his own pistol.

After a scenic journey, Dunbar and Timmons arrive with fresh supplies at the desolate Fort Sedgwick, finding it deserted except for a lone wolf that Dunbar befriends and dubs Two Socks from the coloring of its front legs. Dunbar, while waiting for reinforcements to arrive, sets in order the deserted post.

Meanwhile, the teamster Timmons, while returning to their point of departure, is ambushed by Pawnee Indians and scalped. Timmons' death and the suicide of the major who sent them there prevents Union officers from knowing of Dunbar's assignment to the post, effectively isolating Dunbar. Dunbar remains unaware of the full situation and its implications. He notes in his journal how strange it is that no more soldiers join him at the post.

Dunbar finds himself drawn to the lifestyle and customs of his Indian neighbors. He becomes a hero among the Sioux and is accepted as an honorary member of the tribe after he helps them locate a migrating herd of buffalo, which they depend upon as a source of food, material, and clothing.

Dunbar further helps defend the settlement against a Pawnee raiding party, providing the Sioux warriors with surplus rifles and ammunition from the fort. He eventually is accepted as a full member of the tribe, and is named Šuŋgmánitu Tȟaŋka Ob'wačhi (the eponymous "Dances with Wolves". Šuŋgmánitu Tȟaŋka literally large coyote, Lakota for wolf), after the scouts witnessed him frolicking with Two Socks, the wolf that follows Dunbar. He falls in love with Stands With A Fist (Mary McDonnell), a white female who initially served as an interpreter between Kicking Bird and Dunbar, and the two even secretly have sex while Stands With A Fist is mourning her dead husband, who had died in battle; the two eventually marry, and Dunbar spends more time communing with the tribe than manning his post at Fort Sedgwick.

Dunbar's idyll ends when he tells Kicking Bird that white men will continue to invade their land in "numbers like the stars." They tell Chief Ten Bears, who decides it is time to move the village to its winter camp.

As the packing finishes, Dunbar realizes that his journal, left behind at the deserted fort, is a blueprint for finding the Sioux, revealing that he knows far too much about their ways. He returns to retrieve it, but finds Fort Sedgwick is re-occupied by reinforcing Army troops, who shoot Cisco and arrest and beat Dunbar as a deserter.

In an interrogation, Dunbar explains to Lt. Elgin (whom Dunbar met earlier in Maj. Fambrough's office) that he had a journal with orders about his posting to Fort Sedgwick. Elgin asks one of the soldiers that first arrived at the fort, Spivey, if there was a journal, but the man lies that he hasn't seen it. In actuality, Spivey carries the journal in his pocket. Afterwards, Army officers and troops escort Dunbar from Sedgwick to Fort Hayes where he is to be hanged. They happen upon Two Socks and the soldiers start taking pot shots at him, which Dunbar tries to prevent. The soldiers kill the wolf who won't leave because he is faithful to Dunbar.

Soon after, Wind In His Hair and other warriors from the tribe attack the column of men, rescuing Dunbar. Smiles A Lot retrieves Dunbar's journal floating in a stream.

After returning to the winter camp, Dunbar realizes that as a deserter and fugitive, he will continue to draw the unwelcome attention of the Army and endanger the welfare of the tribe if he stays with the Sioux. Under the protests of his Sioux friends, Dunbar decides that he must leave the tribe, saying he must speak to those who would listen. His wife accompanies him.

As Dances With Wolves Dunbar and Stands With A Fist leave the camp, Wind In His Hair cries out that Dances with Wolves will always be his friend. Shortly, a column of cavalry and Pawnee army scouts arrive to find their former camp site empty.

Cast

Dances with Wolves illustration featuring Kevin Costner and Rodney A. Grant.

Production

Originally written as a spec script by Michael Blake, it went unsold in the mid-1980s. It was Kevin Costner who, in early 1986 (when he was relatively unknown), encouraged Blake to turn the screenplay into a novel, to improve its chances of being adapted into a film. The novel manuscript of Dances with Wolves was rejected by numerous publishers but finally published in paperback in 1988. As a novel, the rights were purchased by Costner, with an eye to his directing it.[4] Actual filming lasted from July 18 to November 23, 1989. Most of the movie was filmed on location in South Dakota, but a few scenes were filmed in Wyoming. Filming locations included the Badlands National Park, the Black Hills, the Sage Creek Wilderness Area, and the Belle Fourche River area. The buffalo hunt scenes were filmed at the Triple U Buffalo Ranch near Pierre, South Dakota, as were the fort Sedgwick scenes, the set being constructed on the property. [5]

Because of budget overruns and production delays, and the general perception, after the fiasco of Michael Cimino's Heaven's Gate, then considered one of the most mismanaged Westerns in film history, Costner's project was satirically dubbed "Kevin's Gate" by Hollywood critics and skeptics during the months prior to its release. [6]

The language spoken in the film is a fairly accurate, although simplified [citation needed], version of the actual Lakota language. Lakota Sioux language instructor Doris Leader Charge (1931--2001) was the on-set Lakota dialogue coach and also portrayed Pretty Shield, wife of Chief Ten Bears, portrayed by Floyd Red Crow Westerman.[7]

According to the "Making Of" documentary on the Special Edition Dances With Wolves DVD, not all of the buffalo were computer animated and/or puppets. In fact, Costner and crew employed the largest domestically owned buffalo ranch, with two of the domesticated buffalo being borrowed from Neil Young, and used the herd for the hunting scene. The hunt chase was filmed live and Costner did his own stunts for the shots. The only computer animation and puppetry special effects that were used were for the shots of the buffalo falling.

Despite portraying the adopted daughter of Graham Greene's character Kicking Bird, Mary McDonnell, then 37, was actually two months older than Greene, and less than two years younger than Tantoo Cardinal, the actress playing her adoptive mother. In addition, McDonnell was extremely nervous about shooting her sex scene with Kevin Costner, requesting it be toned down to a more modest version than what was scripted.[8]

Possible inspiration

Lt. John Dunbar's career trajectory, including his Frontier posting as reward for accidental heroism in the American Civil War, is nearly identical to Captain Wilton Parmenter's (Ken Berry) in the 1960s TV show F Troop. Both enjoyed unusually chummy relationships with the local tribes.

Reception

Dances with Wolves was extremely popular, garnering $184 million in U.S. box office sales, and $424 million in total box office sales worldwide.[9] The film is often praised for its humanistic portrayal of Native Americans, because it went beyond the typical Hollywood portrayal of either the "noble" or the "blood-thirsty savage." Because of the film, the Sioux nation adopted Costner as an honorary member.[10] In 2007, the Library of Congress selected Dances with Wolves for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.[3]

Awards

Won:

Nominated:

American Film Institute recognition

Sequel

The Holy Road, a well-received sequel novel by Michael Blake, the author of both the original Dances With Wolves novel and the movie screenplay, was published in 2001. [11] It picks up eleven years after "Dances With Wolves." John Dunbar is still married to Stands With A Fist and they have three children. Stands With A Fist and one of the children are kidnapped by a party of white rangers and Dances With Wolves must mount a rescue mission. As of 2007, Blake was writing a film adaptation, although Kevin Costner was not yet attached to the project. [12] In the end, however, Costner stated he would not take part in this production.[citation needed]. Viggo Mortensen has been rumored to be attached to the project, playing Dunbar [13]

Versions

Dances with Wolves has been released to DVD on four occasions. The first on November 17, 1998 on a single disc. The second on February 16, 1999 as a two disc set with a DTS Soundtrack. The third was released on May 20, 2003 as a two disc set (Special Extended Edition). The fourth was released on May 25, 2004 as a single disc in full frame. There is also the definitive director's cut three disc set with a 236 minute version on two discs and special features on the third, including a lengthy making-of-documentary.

1998 Release (1 disc)

Disc 1: Movie

  • Format: anamorphic, closed-captioned, color, THX, wide screen, NTSC
  • Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
  • Run Time: 181 minutes
  • Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)

1999 Release (1 disc) (DTS)

Disc 1 & 2: Movie

  • Format: anamorphic, closed-captioned, color, wide screen, NTSC
  • Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
  • Run Time: 181 minutes
  • Audio Tracks: English (DTS), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
  • Commentary by: director Kevin Costner and Jim Wilson

2003 Release (2 discs) (Special Extended Edition)

Disc 1: (2 sided) Movie
Disc 2: Special Features

  • Format: anamorphic, closed-captioned, color, THX, wide screen, NTSC
  • Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
  • Run Time: 236 minutes
  • Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
  • Commentary by: Kevin Costner and producer Jim Wilson, director of photography Dean Semler and editor Neil Travis
  • New extended version with never-before-seen additional scenes (236 minutes)
  • New "The Creation of an Epic" retrospective documentary
  • Original making-of featurette
  • Original music video
  • New Dances photo montage with introduction by Ben Glass
  • New Poster gallery

2004 Release (1 disc)

Disc 1: Movie

  • Format: closed-captioned, color, NTSC
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
  • Run Time: 181 minutes
  • Audio Tracks: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)

2004 Release (3 discs) (Special Edition - Director's Cut)

Disc 1 & 2: Movie
Disc 3: Special Features

  • Run Time: 236 minutes
  • Audio Tracks: English/Lakota
  • Commentary by the Director (Costner)
  • New "The Creation of an Epic" retrospective documentary
  • Original making-of featurette
  • Original music video
  • New Dances photo montage with introduction by Ben Glass
  • New Poster gallery

Soundtrack

For more information: Dances with Wolves (soundtrack).

John Barry composed the Award-winning score, which became a very popular film score. Pope John Paul II once referred to it as among his favorite pieces of music.[14] It was issued in 1990 initially and again in 1995 with bonus tracks and in 2004 with the score "in its entirety."

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b "Dances with Wolves: Overview" (plot/stars/gross, related films), allmovie, 2007, webpage: amovie12092.
  2. ^ "Dances with Wolves" (overview), IMDb, 2007, webpage: IMDb-99348.
  3. ^ a b 2007 list of films inducted into the National Film Registry
  4. ^ ""Dances with Wolves"". IMDB. Retrieved 2008-03-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ "Dances with Wolves" - Southdakota.midwestmovies.com
  6. ^ ""Dances with Wolves"". IMDB. Retrieved 2008-03-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ ""Dances with Wolves"". IMDB. Retrieved 2008-03-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ ""Dances with Wolves"". IMDB. Retrieved 2008-03-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099348/business
  10. ^ Svetkey, Benjamin (1991-03-08). ""Little big movie"". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2008-03-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  11. ^ Blake, Michael (2001). The Holy Road, Random House. ISBN 0-375-76040-7
  12. ^ Blake, Michael. ""The official website of Michael Blake"". Danceswithwolves.net. Retrieved 2008-03-13. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  13. ^ ""Hollywood.com"". Hollywood.com. 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  14. ^ Hollywoodland. David Wallace. 2003.

Bibliography

  • Blake, Michael. Dances with Wolves, Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-449-00075-3.
  • Blake, Michael. The Holy Road, Random House. ISBN 0-375-76040-7.
  • Desobrie, Jean. "Rencontre avec des films remarquables" (Film Analysis - In French), Roger. ISBN 2-903880-03-4.
Awards
Preceded by Academy Award for Best Picture
1990 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Golden Globe for Best Picture - Drama
1990 		Succeeded by

Template:Americanfilms1990s

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