Buffalo Bill plans to put on his own Wild West sideshow, and Chief Sitting Bull has agreed to appear in it. However, Sitting Bull has his own hidden agenda, involving the President and General Custer.
Direction
Altman's wandering camera finds truth in chaos
Acting
Newman weaponizes his own charisma against himself
Writing
Newman and Benton's savage satire of self-mythologizing
Director
Robert Altman
Paul Newman
The Star (William F. Cody)
Joel Grey
The Producer (Nate Salisbury)
Kevin McCarthy
The Publicist (Maj. John Burke)
Harvey Keitel
The Relative (Ed Goodman)
Allan F. Nicholls
The Journalist (Prentiss Ingraham)
Geraldine Chaplin
The Sure Shot (Annie Oakley)
John Considine
The Sure Shot's Manager (Frank Butler)
Robert DoQui
The Wrangler (Oswald Dart)
Bert Remsen
The Bartender (Crutch)
Denver Pyle
The Indian Agent (McLaughlin)
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Altman fired the original Sitting Bull actor for being 'too Hollywood Native' and cast Will Sampson, a hospital orderly with no acting experience.
The film adapts Arthur Kopit's 'Indians,' written during Vietnam—its anti-imperialism infuriated 1976 audiences expecting Rambo Westerns.
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Reactions from the web
Watched this again the other night. So many great performances. Newman as a vain, buffoonish Buffalo Bill is hilarious.
@travb705
Gotta love the Dolby Digital sound of an Altman film 😀
@rossdurling6208 2
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