Dances with Wolves: 20th Anniversary Edition (1990)

A historical drama about the relationship between a Civil War soldier and a band of Sioux Indians, Kevin Costner's directorial debut was also a surprisingly popular hit, considering its length, period setting, and often somber tone. The film opens on a particularly dark note, as melancholy Union lieutenant John W. Dunbar attempts to kill himself on a suicide mission, but instead becomes an unintentional hero. His actions lead to his reassignment to a remote post in remote South Dakota, where he encounters the Sioux. Attracted by the natural simplicity of their lifestyle, he chooses to leave his former life behind to join them, taking on the name Dances with Wolves. Soon, Dances with Wolves has become a welcome member of the tribe and fallen in love with a white woman who has been raised amongst the tribe. His peaceful existence is threatened, however, when Union soldiers arrive with designs on the Sioux land. Some detractors have criticized the film's depiction of the tribes as simplistic; such objections did not dissuade audiences or the Hollywood establishment, however, which awarded the film seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

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Dances with Wolves is a 1990 epic western film based on the book of the same name which tells the story of a Civil War-era United States Army lieutenant who travels to the American frontier to find a military post, and his dealings with a group of Sioux Indians.
Developed by director/star Kevin Costner over five years, with a budget of only $22 million, the film had high production values and won 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture and the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama. 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."

Kevin Costner stars in and directs this triumphant masterpiece written by Michael Blake, based on his novel. This breathtaking 20th Anniversary Edition includes an extended cut of the film and all-new exclusive extras. Winner of seven Academy Awards®, including Best Directing and Best Picture, this modern classic tells the story of Lt. Dunbar (Costner), a Civil War hero who befriends a tribe of Sioux Indians while stationed at a desolate outpost on the American frontier. What follows is a series of unforgettable moments – from Dunbar’s tender scenes with Stands With A Fist (Mary

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His name, "Dances With Wolves," is the fulfillment of his character, the character he exposed in the opening scenes. He does what all medicine people do–he builds relationships between this world and other worlds–worlds of the spirit, of animals, of dreams, of strangers, and of new human values. As the film ends, he will try to bridge these worlds, and he begins the return journey to "talk with those who would listen." Screenwriter Michael Blake and Kevin Costner bridge two worlds themselves, and they do it without a word about shamanism or the psychology of mystical experience. I suspect, however, that they knew just what they were doing.

Excerpt from Donald Williams review

Rather than play it safe for his directorial debut, Kevin Costner tackled an epic tale in a moribund genre, playing a U.S. Cavalry soldier who heads West to find himself in Dances With Wolves (1990). Shooting on location in South Dakota, Costner marshaled glorious vistas of open landscapes and a buffalo stampede to capture the mythic purity his Lt. Dunbar hopes to find at the frontier. Harking back to the cycle of revisionist westerns from the 1950s through the 1970s, Dunbar's intimate relationship with the Lakota Sioux tribe reverses Western stereotypes of "savage Indians" and "civilized whites"; Costner's attention to Sioux rituals and subtitled Lakota dialogue mirrors Dunbar's cultural conversion. Rather than becoming a Western hero because he brings civilization to the wild west, Dunbar's heroism lies in his "going native"–but even he is powerless in the face of encroaching white brutality. Overcoming negative publicity and mixed reviews that ranged from comparisons to John Ford to outright disdain, Dances With Wolves became a surprise hit, and received twelve Oscar nominations. With the Academy opting for New Age western myths over Goodfellas' gangster brutality, Costner beat out critical favorite Martin Scorsese for Best Director and Dances With Wolves became one of the few oaters to win Best Picture, spurring on the 1990s revival of the western as a viable Hollywood genre.

Lucia Bozzola, Rovi

Reception
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. The film is often cited as a strong example of the Revisionist Western, given its sympathetic portrayal of American Indians and its sometimes villainous United States soldier characters. The movie won the Best Picture Academy Award against strong competition, notably including Martin Scorsese's GoodFellas and Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Part III.

Currently on Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a positive review score of 76%. Because of the film's popular and lasting impact, the Sioux Nation adopted Costner as an honorary member.

In 2007, the Library of Congress selected Dances with Wolves for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

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Dances with Wolves: 20th Anniversary Edition (1990)

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A special extended edition of the film containing 40 minutes of previously deleted scenes was completed for ABC TV, airing as a two-night miniseries in the fall of 1993. This version was subsequently released to laserdisc, DVD, and Blu-Ray. This longer version is commonly and mistakenly confused as Costner's "director's cut" of the film, but he had little input on it, and stated in an interview with Entertainment Weekly in 2005 that he did not work on the extended version at all.

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."

Awards and honors
Won
Academy Award for Best Picture – Jim Wilson and Kevin Costner
Academy Award for Directing – Kevin Costner
Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay – Michael Blake
Academy Award for Best Cinematography – Dean Semler
Academy Award for Film Editing – Neil Travis
Academy Award for Sound Mixing – Russell Williams II, Jeffrey Perkins, Bill W. Benton, and Gregory H. Watkins
Academy Award for Original Music Score – John Barry
Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama – Jim Wilson and Kevin Costner
Golden Globe Award for Best Director – Kevin Costner
Silver Bear for an outstanding single achievement - Kevin Costner at the 41st Berlin International Film Festival
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Nominated
Academy Award for Best Actor – Kevin Costner
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor – Graham Greene
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress – Mary McDonnell
Academy Award for Best Art Direction – Jeffrey Beecroft and Lisa Dean
Academy Award for Costume Design – Elsa Zamparelli
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American Film Institute recognition
1998 AFI's 100 Years… 100 Movies #75
2006 AFI's 100 Years… 100 Cheers #59

Edition Details:
DISC 1
*The Film
Audio commentary by director/producer/actor Kevin Costner and producer Jim Wilson
Audio commentary by director of photography Dean Semler and editor Neil Travis
Military Rank and Social Hierarchy Guide
"Real History or Make Believe?" true or false quiz

DISC 2
"A Day in the Life on the Western Frontier" featurette (14:18, 1080p)
"The Original Making of Dances with Wolves" featurette (20:58, SD)
"The Creation of an Epic: A Retrospective" documentary (74:39, SD)
John Barry Music Video (3:52, SD)
"Second Wind" vignette (5:18, SD)
"Confederate March and Music" featurette (2:13, SD)
"Getting the Point" featurette (3:58, SD)
"Burying the Hatchet" featurette (1:12, SD)
"Animatronic Buffalo" featurette (2:18, SD)
Photo Gallery (9:21, SD)
Poster Gallery (1080p)
2 TV Spots (1:04, SD)
Theatrical Trailer (2:33, 1080p)