Little Big Man

Little Big Man is a 1970 American Western film directed by Arthur Penn and based on the 1964 novel Little Big Man by Thomas Berger. While broadly categorized as a western, or an epic, the film encompasses several literary/film genres, including comedy, drama and adventure. The film follows the life of a white man who was raised by members of the Cheyenne nation during the 19th century. The film is largely concerned with contrasting the lives of American pioneers and Native Americans throughout the progression of the boy's life. It stars Dustin Hoffman, Chief Dan George, Faye Dunaway, Martin Balsam, Jeff Corey and Richard Mulligan.

Little Big Man is an early revisionist Western in its sympathetic depiction of Native Americans and its exposure of the villainous practices of United States Cavalry. The revision uses elements of satire and tragedy to examine prejudice and injustice. Little Big Man is an anti-establishment film of the period, indirectly protesting America's involvement in the Vietnam War by portraying the United States Armed Forces negatively.

The end of the film is flawed in my opinion. The Chief Dan George character does not finish the story as he should. There should be no nostalic silence from Jack Crabb at the end. It makes too much sense and the events it depicts are not sensical, but horror, emotion and violence. I believe the ending was adapted later in the production process. But you be the judge.

In 2014, Little Big Man was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.