Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

"Truth is whatever gets the loudest applause." Debunking western myths even more than he did in McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971), Robert Altman's Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson (1976) sardonically explores the gap between western history and legend in show biz-obsessed America. Megalomaniac "Buffalo Bill" Cody (Paul Newman) assumes the legend created for him by writer Ned Buntline (Burt Lancaster), aided and abetted by his producer (Joel Grey) and his publicist (Kevin McCarthy), perpetuating myths of white triumph over savage "Injuns" in his Wild West show, as audiences cheer him on and buy his merchandise. But when Sitting Bull (Frank Kaquitts) joins the troupe with his interpreter (Will Sampson), his request for authenticity threatens to throw a wrench into the proceedings. Regardless of how Bill may feel about the facts, he must bow to the preferences of the paying public. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 (Cinemascope)
• Audio: 5.1, PCM Mono
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Subtitle: French, Spanish
• Features:
  • • "From the Prairie to the Palace" original featurette
    • Original theatrical trailer
    • Teaser trailer
    • English: mono
    • French & Spanish subtitles

AWARDS

• Berlin International Film Festival

•     Won Golden Bear - 1976

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Director:

  Robert Altman

• Producer:

  Robert Altman

• Screenwriter:

  Robert Altman, Alan Rudolph

• Play Author:

  Arthur Kopit

• Cinematographer:

  Paul Lohmann

• Composer (Music Score):

  Richard Baskin

• Editor:

  Peter Appleton, Dennis M. Hill

• Production Designer:

  Tony Masters

• Art Director:

  Jack Maxsted

• Associate Producer:

  Bob Eggenweiler

• Executive Producer:

  David Susskind

• Costume Designer:

  Anthony Powell

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  Jim Webb, Richard Portman, Chris McLaughlin

• Makeup:

  Monty Westmore

• First Assistant Director:

  Tommy Thompson

REVIEW:

• Exploring thematic terrain similar to Nashville (1975), Robert Altman and co-writer Alan Rudolph turn Arthur Kopit's play Indians into a blunt indictment of contemporary pop culture and the fallacies of western pop history. The star may perpetuate lies to sell tickets, but the audience buys those tickets and worships the star's "heroic" image, guaranteeing that the lies, and their legacy of Native American abuse, will endure. Altman denies a similar star- worshipping satisfaction to his movie audience, obscuring his own star with facial hair and few close shots (as he did with Warren Beatty in McCabe and Mrs. Miller), even as Paul Newman's presence also lends Buffalo Bill "star quality." Audiences and critics did not look kindly on Altman's schematic critique, ensuring that Buffalo Bill and the Indians' ironic view of American history-making was little seen in its Bicentennial year release. ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi