User reviews

The sentimentality that this film oozes is just too much to bear at times. Apparently the American public, who is accustomed to such trifling immodesty, swallowed this up when it was first released and hailed Costner as the "new genius of American art films". Well, since then we've learned two things, that first of all, this film is another foray into the "John Wayne" bias of American dogmatism and secondly Costner is a ham who hasn't scored another big hit in years. The film gives us the once again undefiled view of an idealist who was born in the wrong ethic group. Costner plays a Union troop in the Civil War that is merely a "misunderstood" progeny and suffers physically and spiritually as a result of it. He gets a new command and like a dim witted simpleton he picks the one that is the furthest from civilization. He soon learns that solitude is not an easy thing. One day he encounters a group of Indians in one of the most ridiculous scenes I have ever seen put forth to a group of adults. The film goes down hill from there and fast. One unrealistic example is when he shows his new Indian friends some ground coffee and they react like dumb founded buffoons, it was a fact in history that the Native Americans ground corn, and other seeds so they would in no way be surprised like this exaggerated claim. Why render them childish? Costner then becomes a part of the tribe, merely walking into it like a new found brother. He learns the dialect, and sits with the chief while exuding pensive thought.

Of course, instead of falling in love with an Indian woman, he falls in love with a captured white who mumbles her way through like a drought minded wench. How convenient that the evil Sioux captured an English speaking woman who is both beautiful and robust! Instead of portraying the Indians in a truthful manner, Costner singlehandedly misinterprets their culture as something bordering on vanity and he does so by extinguishing their intelligence and ability to live in harmony with nature. Also, the scenes that dealt with the Pawnee were merely used for action sequences and in no way understood the vital role that other tribes had in relation to each other.

The only decent portrait is of the stupidity and narrowness of the virulent white people who were shooting at everyone and everything. What more is there to say about this lousy film except that it had no 'truth' about it and it wasn't a loving portrayal as some people claim it to be?

This is one movie that just never gets off the ground for me. Ignoring Costner's performance (which is a good thing), the movie just drags along at a snails pace. 20 minutes takes forever, and I find it near impossible to stay awake while watching it. How people found this great I will never understand. I do enjoy some slow-paced and long movies, but this is ridiculous. There is nothing to hook you to keep you interested.

As for Costner... I am really getting bored of bashing him, so read any of my reviews for any other movie I have seen him in, and it probably will apply here. I will say this... I really wish he would take a lesson in how to do an accent correctly. He is just embarrassing in his attempts.

Like all but a handful of Hollywood movies since 1980, this is one big fat bore. I watched this when it came out in the theater & now 10 years later, I don't remember a thing about the movie...except that I found costner's performance to be too trying. If you can't remember anything about a movie after having watched it, it wasn't worthwhile.

As others have noted, this is politically correct but that is the only way in which the word "correct" (meaning not wrong) could be applied. In every other way (especially factually), it is so unlikely so as to be almost a parody. These vignettes are as realistic as all the good teeth on display. In fact, there was good behavior and awful behavior on both sides and while it is pretty to watch, by being so simplistic and one-sided it does more harm than good in terms of stating the obvious, that there was plenty of cruelty on both sides. Certainly, white captives, if they lived, rarely looked like the first runner up in a beauty pageant. In this case, a more balanced version would have been more intelligent and helpful but perhaps less pretty to watch. It is a pity that an opportunity to teach rather than preach was missed and all those gorgeous 20th century smiles went to waste.

Could this movie drag on any longer? if i wanted to see three hours of scenery i would fly over dakota! Truly three hours of my life that i will never get back.

This is one of the most overrated Movies ever. For a film to win so many Oscars you would think that it is something special. There is nothing special or innovative about this. In fact, it is less than Average on all accounts.

Sprawling Landscape Photography rarely can elevate a Movie above its shortcomings. The Hero is a likable if not an engaging sort, although the Star/Director almost breaks the "Suspension of Disbelief" quite a few times with less than adequate Screen Presence, especially when narrating or anytime He is called on to display depth of Character.

The manipulative turns abound. The Whites are presented, as the Narrator must tell us, in an obvious redundant description of a Companion…"The foulest Creature I have ever met."

The Story is flat and way too long and unimpressive and betrays the Complex Subject Matter many times. Even the Buffalo Hunt is lackluster as are all of the Action Set Pieces.

This is one of those Films that somehow is sprinkled with "Fairy Dust" and spellbinds Audiences and Critics into believing that there is more than meets the eye. Think Titanic or E.T. It is almost unapproachable.

This is not the creation of Art, it is more like sleight of hand. A prefabricated, posturing, Picture that would not and did not endure its initial Academy Anointing.

Dances with wolves was not that good; there were too many strings left untied. It seemed more like a legend or fairytale where every single person is so happy throughout the entire film. When things did go wrong there was only two to three minutes of fighting then the battle was over it was not even a battle more like a fist fight between a seven year old and a grown man. Just one punch and there's no need for three more rounds of this cause the kid probably won't even wake up in time. The relationship that is formed throughout the movie has nothing to do with what the title suggests it's about. Most of the movie is in a language I cannot understand. The plot is nice but not how it turned out.