Best Picture (1990) At the time of its release, Dances With Wolves was widely considered to be one of the best films Hollywood had ever made about Native Americans. Not only did it win seven Academy Awards, but it was even selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. That Kevin Costner sure knows how to direct a popular (and sympathetic) portrayal of the Native American plight, doesn't he? ...Doesn't he? It turns out that no, he does not. One of the most overlooked aspects of Dances With Wolves is how distinctly Costner posits his character as the white savior, becoming the outsider who steps in to save the day because evidently the "savages" aren't capable of doing things on their own. Dances With Wolves is the dangerous kind of Native American film, allowing white audiences to "learn" something about the goodness of Native American culture without being forced to confront a lot of the harsher consequences of Manifest Destiny. Also, it only looks like an authentic portrayal because other representations up to that point were over-the-top ridiculous by comparison.
