| Dances with Wolves | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster |
|
| Directed by | Kevin Costner |
| Produced by |
|
| Screenplay by | Michael Blake |
| Narrated by | Kevin Costner |
| Starring |
|
| Music by | John Barry |
| Cinematography | Dean Semler |
| Editing by | Neil Travis |
| Studio | Tig Productions |
| Distributed by | Orion Pictures |
| Release date(s) | November 21, 1990 |
| Running time | 175 minutes 236 minutes (Director's cut) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | |
| Budget | $22 million |
| Box office | $424,208,848 |
Dances with Wolves is a 1990 epic western film directed by and starring Kevin Costner. It is a film adaptation of the 1988 book of the same name by Michael Blake and tells the story of a Union Army Lieutenant who travels to the American frontier to find a military post, and his dealings with a group of Lakota Indians.
Costner developed the film over five years, with a budget of $22 million. Dances with Wolves had high production values[1] and won seven Academy Awards including Best Picture and the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama.[2] Much of the dialogue is in the Lakota language with English subtitles. It was shot in South Dakota and Wyoming.
It is credited as a leading influence for the revitalization of the Western genre of filmmaking in Hollywood. 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]
Contents |
In 1863, First Lieutenant John J. Dunbar (Kevin Costner) is injured in the American Civil War. Rather than having his leg amputated he takes a horse and rides adjacent to and in full view of the enemy front lines "in order to produce [his] own death." The Union army attacks while the Confederates are distracted by Dunbar's ride, and the battle ends up being a Confederate rout. Dunbar survives, receives a citation for bravery and is awarded the horse who carried him on the field that day, as well as his choice of posting. Dunbar requests a transfer to the western frontier so he can see it before it's gone. Dunbar arrives at his new post, Fort Sedgwick, but finds it abandoned and in disrepair. Despite being alone and the threat of nearby Native American tribes, he elects to stay and man the post himself. He soon begins the task of rebuilding and restocking the fort and seems to prefer the solitude afforded him. He records many of his observations in his diary.
Dunbar initially encounters his neighbours, a Sioux tribe, when several attempts are made to steal his horse and intimidate him. In response to these interactions, Dunbar decides to seek out the Sioux camp in an attempt to establish a dialogue. On his way, he comes across an injured Native American woman. She is Stands with a Fist (Mary McDonnell), the white, adopted daughter of Kicking Bird, the tribe's medicine man (Graham Greene) whose white family was killed by the Pawnee when she was a child. Dunbar returns her to the tribe's camp to be treated, which dramatically changes the Sioux's attitude toward him. Eventually, Dunbar establishes a rapport with Kicking Bird, though the language barrier frustrates them; Stands with a Fist reluctantly acts as a translator.
Dunbar finds himself drawn to the lifestyle and customs of the tribe and begins spending most of his time with them. He becomes a hero among the Sioux and is accepted as an honored guest after he locates a migrating herd of buffalo and participates in the hunt. When at Fort Sedgwick, Dunbar also befriends a wolf he dubs "Two Socks" for its white forepaws. One day, the Sioux observe Dunbar and Two Socks chasing each other in play and promptly give him his Sioux name "Dances with Wolves". During this time, Dunbar also forges a romantic relationship with Stands with a Fist and helps defend the village from an attack by the rival Pawnee tribe. Dunbar eventually wins Kicking Bird's approval to marry Stands with a Fist, and he abandons Fort Sedgwick forever.
Because of the growing Pawnee and white threat, Chief Ten Bears (Floyd Red Crow Westerman) decides it is time to move the village to its winter camp. Dunbar decides to accompany them and returns to Fort Sedgwick to retrieve his journal. However, when he arrives he finds it re-occupied by the U.S. Army. Because Dunbar is dressed in Sioux clothing, the soldiers mistake him for a hostile warrior and open fire, killing his horse and capturing him. When Dunbar refuses to assist them in serving as an interpreter to the local tribes, the Army decides to put him on trial for treason and transport him back east as a prisoner.
While travelling in an armed caravan the soldiers of the escort shoot Two Socks when the wolf attempts to follow Dunbar. The Sioux subsequently attack the convoy, killing all the soldiers and freeing Dunbar. Dunbar decides to leave the Sioux with Stands with a Fist since his status as a perceived traitor puts the tribe in danger. After they leave, U.S. troops are seen searching the mountains but are unable to locate them, while a lone wolf (implied to be a surviving Two Socks) howls in the distance. An epilogue text states that thirteen years afterwards, the last remnants of free Sioux were subjugated to the American government, ending the conquest of the Western frontier states.
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.[5] Actual production lasted for four months, from July 18 to November 23, 1989. Most of the movie was filmed on location in South Dakota, mainly near Pierre and Rapid City, with a few scenes filmed in Wyoming. Specific 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 outside Fort Pierre, South Dakota, as were the Fort Sedgwick scenes, the set being constructed on the property.[6]
Production delays were numerous, because of South Dakota's unpredictable weather, the difficulty of "directing" barely trainable wolves, and the complexity of the Indian battle scenes. Particularly arduous was the film's centerpiece buffalo hunt sequence: this elaborate chase was filmed over three weeks using 100 Indian stunt riders and an actual stampeding herd of several thousand buffalo. During one shot, Costner (who did almost all of his own horseback riding) was "T-boned" by another rider and knocked off his horse, nearly breaking his back. The accident is captured in The Creation of an Epic, the behind-the-scenes documentary on the Dances with Wolves Special Edition DVD.
According to the documentary, none of the buffalo were computer animated (CGI was then in its infancy) and only a few were animatronic or otherwise fabricated. In fact, Costner and crew employed the largest domestically owned buffalo ranch, with two of the domesticated buffalo being borrowed from Neil Young; this was the herd used for the buffalo hunt sequence.
Budget overruns were inevitable, owing to Costner's breaking several unspoken Hollywood "rules" for first-time directors: traditionally, they avoid both shooting outside and working with children and animals as much as possible. As a result, late in the production Costner was forced to add $3 million personally in out-of-pocket money to the film's original $15-million budget. Referring to the infamous fiasco of Michael Cimino's 1980 Heaven's Gate, considered the most mismanaged Western in film history, Costner's project was satirically dubbed "Kevin's Gate" by Hollywood critics and pundits skeptical of a three-hour, partially subtitled Western by a novice filmmaker.[5]
The film changed the novel's Comanche Indians to Sioux, because of the larger number of Sioux speakers. 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.[5]
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.[5]
Defying expectation, Dances with Wolves proved instantly popular at the box office, eventually garnering $184 million in U.S. box office sales, and $424 million in total sales worldwide.[7] The movie won the Best Picture Academy Award against strong competition, notably Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas.
As of 2011, the film holds a positive review score of 78% on Rotten Tomatoes.[8] Because of the film's popular and lasting impact, the Sioux Nation adopted Costner as an honorary member.[9]
In 2007, the Library of Congress selected Dances with Wolves for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.[3]
Native American activist and actor Russell Means was less kind about some aspects of the film's technical accuracy. In 2009, he said "Remember Lawrence of Arabia? That was Lawrence of the Plains. The odd thing about making that movie is that they had a woman teaching the actors the Lakota language, but Lakota has a male-gendered language and a female-gendered language. Some of the Indians and Kevin Costner were speaking in the feminine way. When I went to see it with a bunch of Lakota guys, we were laughing."[10]
63rd Academy Awards: In addition to becoming the first Western film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture since 1931's Cimarron,[11] Dances with Wolves won the following additional Oscars:[12]
Dances with Wolves was also nominated in the following categories:
American Film Institute recognition:
Other accolades:
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.[18] 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.[19] In the end, however, Costner stated he would not take part in this production. Viggo Mortensen has been rumored to be attached to the project, playing Dunbar.[20]
St. David's Field, Tennessee does not exist nor did it in 1863. As the opening battle is a minor portion of the film, it was considered undesirable to name an actual historical battle, which might result in knowledgeable viewers taking exception to fictional events.
Fort Sedgwick, Colorado was erected as Camp Rankin and renamed for General John Sedgwick (1813–1864). Sedgwick was killed May 9, 1864, at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia. Fort Sedgwick served as an army post from July 1864 to May 1871. John Sedgwick did erect a fort in Kansas in 1860.
Fort Hays, Kansas was named for General Alexander Hays (1819–1864). Hays was killed May 5, 1864, in the Battle of the Wilderness, Virginia. Fort Hays served as an army post from October 11, 1865, to November 8, 1889.
There was a real John Dunbar who worked as a missionary for the Pawnee in the 1830s–40s, and sided with the Indians in a dispute with government farmers and a local Indian agent.[21] It is unclear if the name "John Dunbar" was chosen as a corollary to the real historical figure.
The fictional Lieutenant John Dunbar of 1863 is correctly shown in the film wearing a gold bar on his officer shoulder straps, indicating his rank as a First Lieutenant. From 1836 to 1872, the rank of First Lieutenant was indicated by a gold bar; after 1872, the rank was indicated by a silver bar. Similarly, Captain Cargill is correctly depicted wearing a pair of gold bars, indicating the rank of Captain at that time.[22]
The description at the finale is correct; 13 years after the film is set, the last band of free Sioux were forced into a humiliating surrender at Fort Robinson, Nebraska, and the dominance and prevalence of the Plains Indians was over.
The first Laserdisc release of Dances with Wolves was on November 15, 1991, by Orion Home Video on a two-disc extended play laserdisc set.
The first Dances with Wolves VHS version was released in 1991. Dances with Wolves has been released to several VHS versions. The limited collector's edition set comes with two VHS tapes, six high gloss 14" x 11" Lobby Photos, Dances with Wolves The Illustrated Story Of The Epic Film book, and an organized collector's edition storage case.
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 featuring the Extended Edition. The fourth was released on May 25, 2004, as a single disc in full frame.
Dances with Wolves has been released on Blu-ray in Germany on December 5, 2008, in France on the April 15, 2009, in the United Kingdom on the October 26, 2009, and in the United States on January 11, 2011. The German, French, and American releases feature the Extended Edition, while the British release features the theatrical cut.
One year after original theatrical release of Dances with Wolves, a 4-hour version of the film opened at select theaters in London. This longer cut was dubbed Dances with Wolves: The Special Edition, and it restored nearly an hour's worth of scenes that had been removed to keep the original film's running time under 3 hours.
In a letter to British film reviewers, director Kevin Costner and producer Jim Wilson addressed their reasons for presenting a longer version of the film:[23]
Upon the release of the four-hour Dances With Wolves, the question naturally arises: why? Why add another hour to a film that by most standards pushes the time limit of conventional movie making? We opted to produce an extended version of Dances With Wolves for several reasons. The 52 additional minutes that represent this "new" version were difficult to cut in the first place...the opportunity to introduce them to audiences is compelling.
We have received countless letters from people worldwide asking when or if a sequel would be made, so it seemed like a logical step to enhance our film with existing footage. Virtually every character is richer, from the teamster, Timmons, to the tribal chief, Ten Bears.
Making an extended version is by no means to imply that the original Dances With Wolves was unfinished or incomplete; rather, it creates an opportunity for those who fell in love with the characters and the spectacle of the film to experience more of both. We hope you enjoy it.
The genesis of the 4-hour version of the film was further explained in an article for Entertainment Weekly that appeared only 10 months after the premiere of the original film:
While the small screen has come to serve as a second chance for filmmakers who can't seem to let their babies go, Kevin Costner and his producing partner, Jim Wilson, hope that their newly completed version will hit theater screens first:[24]
- "I spent seven months working on it," Wilson says of the expanded Wolves. He's quick to defend the Oscar-winning version as "the best picture we had in us at the time," yet Wilson also says he's "ecstatic" over the recut. "It's a brand-new picture," he insists. "There's now more of a relationship between Kevin and Stands With a Fist, more with the wolf, more with the Indians — stuff that's integral all through the story."
- Of course, exhibitors may not want a longer version of an already widely seen movie, but Wilson remains optimistic. "I don't think the time is now," he acknowledges, "but ideally, there is a point at which it would come out with an intermission, booked into the very best venues in America." A premiere in the form of a two-night network miniseries (à la The Godfather Saga) is also a possibility. For now, however, the four-hour Wolves remains a private dancer.
This Special Edition was eventually broadcast in 1993 for the American network television premiere at ABC. For the DVD release, the Special Edition was dubbed an Extended Cut. For Blu-ray, the same cut was renamed Director's Cut. Ironically, director Kevin Costner would later claim that he did not work on the creation of the 4-hour cut at all.[25] The implication is that his producing partner, Jim Wilson, may have been the primary driving force behind the extended version.
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||