Dances with Wolves

Dances with Wolves was produced and directed by Kevin Costner. It was adapted for the screen by Michael Blake who also wrote the novel upon which the film is based.

Plot Summary

Dances with Wolves is the story of Lt. Dunbar, whose exploration of the Western frontier becomes mirrored in a search for his own identity. The film is shot as a narrative in continuous development, with Dunbar providing a voice-over narrative in the guise of journal entries. It begins dramatically with the badly wounded Dunbar who would rather choose death than allow the amputation of his foot. He charges the Confederate lines and so, unwittingly, becomes a hero.

Allowed to choose his posting, Dinbar opts for the frontier. His increasing loneliness drives him to seek solace with the neighbouring Indian tribe. Gradually he is accepted as a member of the tribe, which in the America of the Civil War (1861-64) is seen as desertion. In order to spare the tribe any more retribution from the army, he leaves with his wife, Stands with a Fist, for the wilderness.

Comment

Dances with Wolves is a film concerned with cultures in collision. To this is added the extra dimension