Dances With Wolves Movie

The epic Western "Dances With Wolves" picked up yet another honor Wednesday night on what appears to be a steady, sure march to Monday night's Oscar ceremonies. Sceenwriter Michael Blake's script for the film, directed by and starring Kevin Costner, was honored by the Writers Guild of America as best screenplay of 1990 based on material from another medium.

There are a few lesser items of suspense in this year's Academy Awards, but most of these relate to the major item of suspense and interest: How big a sweep will develop for "Dances With Wolves"? How many of its 12 nominations can it cash in?

"This time of year there's no place to hide," said an elated Kevin Costner, minutes after he had won the Directors Guild of America award on Saturday night for best director of 1990. In a sense, Costner, the director of the American frontier epic "Dances With Wolves," was acknowledging that this week he's the most visible man in Hollywood as the industry counts down the days until next Monday's Oscar ceremonies.

With a boost from its 12 Oscar nominations, Orion Pictures' "Dances With Wolves" rode off with a rise in ticket sales of more than 40% over the four-day Presidents Day holiday weekend. In its 15th week of release, the Western epic earned $6.2 million on 1,554 screens, up from $3.9 million the previous week. It ranked fifth for the week.

A herd of buffalo stampeded through the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences headquarters on Wednesday, and when the dust cleared, Kevin Costner's sweeping tale of the American frontier had landed 12 Oscar nominations, including best picture, best actor and best director. Its 12 nominations is the most by any film since "Reds" in 1981.

"Let's face it, we've treated (the Indians) very badly; it's a blot on our shield. We've cheated and robbed, killed, murdered, massacred and everything else . . . But they kill one white man and, God, out come the troops! "There are two sides to every story, but I wanted to show their point of view for a change (in "Cheyenne Autumn"). I had wanted to make it for a long time (because, in my movies) I've killed more Indians than Custer, Beecher and Chivington put together."

The notion that "Dances With Wolves" is unique for its positive depiction of Native Americans does not stand the scrutiny of film history. There have been strongly pro-Indian Westerns since the silent era. Many are undercut by incongruous casting and many treat Indian culture in a shallow or formula-bound way. But each of the following films embodies social attitudes that form a direct line to "Dances With Wolves." The Vanishing American (1925).

The display ad for Kevin Costner's stunning "Dances With Wolves," said: "Share the spirit of Thanksgiving with your family. Experience the story that is as wild, adventurous and free as America itself." There are any number of good reasons to see "Dances With Wolves." It is the best Western since John Ford left us.