Little Big Man

( 10 )

Overview

Recounting how the West was won through the eyes of a white man raised as a Native American, Arthur Penn's 1970 adaptation of Thomas Berger's satirical novel was a comic yet stinging allegory about the bloody results of American imperialism. As a misguided 20th-century historian listens, 121-year-old Jack Crabb Dustin Hoffman narrates the story of being the only white survivor of Custer's Last Stand. White orphan Crabb was adopted by the Cheyenne, renamed "Little Big Man," and raised in the ways of the "Human ...
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Overview

Recounting how the West was won through the eyes of a white man raised as a Native American, Arthur Penn's 1970 adaptation of Thomas Berger's satirical novel was a comic yet stinging allegory about the bloody results of American imperialism. As a misguided 20th-century historian listens, 121-year-old Jack Crabb Dustin Hoffman narrates the story of being the only white survivor of Custer's Last Stand. White orphan Crabb was adopted by the Cheyenne, renamed "Little Big Man," and raised in the ways of the "Human Beings" by paternal mentor Old Lodge Skins Chief Dan George, accepting non-conformity and living peacefully with nature. Violently thrust into the white world, Jack meets a righteous preacher Thayer David and his wife Faye Dunaway, tries to be a gunfighter under the tutelage of Wild Bill Hickock Jeff Corey, and gets married. Returned to the Cheyenne by chance, Jack prefers life as a Human Being. The carnage wreaked by the white man in the Washita massacre and the lethal fallout from the egomania of General George A. Custer Richard Mulligan at Little Big Horn, however, show Crabb the horrific implications of Old Lodge Skins' sage observation, "There is an endless supply of White Men, but there has always been a limited number of Human Beings."
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Editorial Reviews

All Movie Guide - Lucia Bozzola
Little Big Man was one of a group of early 1970s Westerns that found a precedent for the atrocities of the Vietnam War in the history of white westward expansion at the expense of Native Americans. In the process, Arthur Penn and screenwriter Calder Willingham take apart the Western itself, sending up myths of white "civilization" and its proper violence while lending a humorous and poignant slant to the mythic "noble savages" -- not to mention casting actual Native American actors. Primed for Western iconoclasm by an ever more vigorous antiwar movement and counterculture, audiences turned Little Big Man into a surprise hit; Chief Dan George garnered a New York Film Critics Circle prize and an Oscar nomination for his performance. One of the most successful of the period's revisionist Westerns, Little Big Man stands as a timely and wittily caustic indictment of western myths and the contemporary legacy of manifest destiny.
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Product Details

  • Release Date: 12/12/2000
  • UPC: 097363772132
  • Original Release: 1970

    • Rating:

  • Source: Paramount
  • Format: VHS

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits
Dustin Hoffman Jack Crabb
Faye Dunaway Mrs. Pendrake
Martin Balsam Merriweather
Richard Mulligan Gen. George A. Custer
Chief Dan George Old Lodge Skins
Jeff Corey Wild Bill Hickok
Kelly Jean Peters Olga
Carol Androsky Caroline
Cal Bellini Younger Bear
Ray Dimas Young Jack Crabb
Alan Howard Adolescent Jack Crabb
James Anderson Sergeant
Jack Bannon Captain
Don Brodie Stage Passenger
Emily Cho Digging Bear
Bud Cokes Man at Bar
Bert Conway Bartender
Lou Cutell Deacon
Thayer David Rev. Silas Pendrake
Aimee Eccles Sunshine
Leonard George Crow Scout
William Hickey Historian
Phil Kenneally Mr. Kane
Ken Mayer Sergeant
Ruben Moreno Shadow that Comes at Night
Jack Mullaney Card Player
Herbert Nelson
Alan Oppenheimer Major
Steve Shemayne Burns Red In The Sun
Robert Little Star Little Horse
Helen Verbit Madame
Jesse Vint Lieutenant
M. Emmet Walsh Shotgun Guard
Technical Credits
Arthur Penn Director, Producer
Dede Allen Editor
Bud Alper Sound/Sound Designer
Dick Smith Special Effects
Logan R. Frazee Special Effects
Angelo P. Graham Art Director, Production Designer
John Paul Hammond Score Composer
Dorothy Jeakins Costumes/Costume Designer
Gene Lasko Producer
Richard Marks Editor
Terry Miles Makeup
Stuart Millar Producer
Mike Moder Asst. Director
Hal Needham Stunts
George R. Nelson Set Decoration/Design
Al Overton Jr. Sound/Sound Designer
Richard Portman Sound/Sound Designer
Harry Stradling Jr. Cinematographer
Dean Tavoularis Production Designer
Calder Willingham Screenwriter
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Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 10 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(7)

4 Star

(3)

3 Star

(0)

2 Star

(0)

1 Star

(0)

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Sort by: Showing all of 10 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 2, 2013

    Actually, historically they have some of their dates mixed up bu

    Actually, historically they have some of their dates mixed up but...one of the first movies to give a more realistic dipiction of the Native American and a more accurate portrayal of G.A. Custer. Hoffman is great and there are a lot of good character actors in it. Definitely worth a view.

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  • Posted October 1, 2010

    more from this reviewer

    one of the best movies depicting American history

    I first saw this movie in history class in junior high. I thought it was great back then and over 25 years later I still love it!

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  • Posted October 1, 2010

    more from this reviewer

    I Also Recommend:

    Villa Rides
    Paint Your Wagon

    "Jack" of all trades

    This is one of the funniest movies I've seen and at the same time it is moving and bittersweet as Dustin Hoffman plays a 100+ year old man recounting his life story among whites and indians and conmen and christians.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    Little Big Man

    We watched this in school and it was interesting. It reminded me of other western type films like Dances With Wolves, The Last of the Mohicans and etc. I've never heard of this movie and didn't know that Dustin Hoffman's in it. Old film too the costumes and the scenary looked almost real.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    " One of the best Hoffman flicks of all"

    "Little Big Man" was, without a SHADOW of a doubt, one of the best Hoffman flicks of all time. In Little Big man, you've the character of Jack Crabb, who, in his own words "knew the whites fer what they was, and the Indians for what they was" Yes, this most amazing of characters was born white, then, after the Indians known as "Human Beings" took the lives of his folks, he was raised by them as one of their own. When he was captured by soliders as a young man after fighting with them in battle he, to avoid being killed by them, lets them know right off that he's as white as they are. Taken to the home of a obnoxiouos, self righteous preacher, he gives that fellow's bored, long suffering wife a new lease on life. Then, later on, when he, a solider, is taken prisoner by Indians, he lets them know that he was raised as one,and they get him back in touch with his people Now,let me stop for a minute and save to those of you who may judge Crabb for what that fellow did to preserve himself, why, tis no more than any of the rest of us critters would do under those very same circumstances if we possesed similar cards to play. Yes, tis called the art of being a survior in a harsh world. Okay, having said all that, I must now state the following: besides Crabb, my most FAVORITE character was that of the preacher's wife, played by Faye Dunway. Folks, do yourself a BIG favor, and purchase this film, for tis one that you'll greatly, most CERTAINLY will enjoy. BTW, today's the 130th anniversary of the battle of Little Big Horn. As one with a bit of Native American blood in me, I'm glad that my ancestors whipped the stuffings out of Custer, that most TERRIBLE of persons. Belle

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    Best movie of all time

    This movie has everything that a great movie should have. Love, action, humor. You name it, it is in it. Everyone should watch this movie at least once in their life.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    one of the best ten movies I have ever seen

    I had always hoped that there would be a sequel to this movie. It is replete with memorable lines, delighful dialogue, and paints an utterly believable Custer.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 1, 2010

    Great Movie - Finally Available on CD

    Dustin Hoffman plays a great role in this movie. The 121 year old Crabb (Hoffman) in full makeup is simply incredible. Old Lodge Skins has numerous great lines. Many dramatic and hilarious scenes. I'm certainly glad it is finally being released on DVD! Great Movie.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted October 14, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 25, 2008

    No text was provided for this review.

Sort by: Showing all of 10 Customer Reviews