70's Cinema: LITTLE BIG MAN

We go back to the beginning of the decade for what has to been one of the most insane movies I have ever seen. To describe this film would be like trying to describe why Madonna's BORDERLINE video is so amazing. You just have to see it. Dustin Hoffman, fresh off of MIDNIGHT COWBOY and THE GRADUATE successes, continued to show the world why he was one of the most dynamite actors of his generation. LITTLE BIG MAN is one of those films that is an actors dream come true! And Dustin was ready for the challenge.



Honestly, this movie came in from netflix and sat on my counter for two weeks. The netflix review on the sleeve called it droll and clocked in at around 2 hours. That is a commitment, but after RYAN'S DAUGHTER, anything seemed short. Ten minutes into it, i kicked myself for not experiencing this film sooner. I have to remember that I like droll.

Starting out with some of the best aging make-up this side of SHINING THROUGH, this movie set itself up for one of my biggest pet peeves. A movie narrated by a character. I have no problem with narration, but I super hate when the movie shows scenes that do not include the narrator. I always ask, "How can this person know what happened or what someone said, if they weren't even there?!" Makes me crazy. Dustin plays Jack Crabb, the oldest living white survivor of Custer's Last Stand. I don't know that much about Custer's Last Stand and I am sad to say that i didn't even know if Custer lived or died or what, so the plot of the movie held a certain amount of suspense for me. My dad would be so proud that i am admitting to not knowing anything about Custer, since he tried to make me read the most boring books about him growing up.

Tossed between the worlds of the native americans (human beings as they are called in the movie) and the white people world, Little Big Man, escapes death about 400 times. Faye Dunaway pops up for to short of a time playing a horny preacher's wife, then later as woman of the night. Faye proves to the world that she was one of the most beautiful women in the world. I really liked that her hair was treated as a supporting character in the film. You can't take your eyes off of it. And of course, we can't forget Chief Dan George. He is so convincing that i kept forgetting that he was an actor and had been acting for a couple of years before getting these role.

Dustin gets to do it all. Become a drunk, fight indians, fight the white man, become a gunslinger and gets himself into a orgy with Sunshine and her sisters. "They don't call her digging bear for nothing." He befriends the tranny indian and the contrary indian, who kinda stole my heart. I have a thing for guys who do everything backwards.

As the movie ended, with what has to be one of the best endings to a movie ever, i was so happy to discover that they had done the narration thing right. Dustin Hoffman was in every single scene. Just like Melanie Griffith in SHING THROUGH! Hats off! SUCCESS!

And I wikipedia'ed Custer's Last Stand and read about it for realz. LITTLE BIG MAN is making me smarter!

I have also decided that next time I go to PONY i am going to order a Sassafras Flip.