A Man Called Horse Movie Review

Often (and rightly) noted as the predecessor to Dances with Wolves, A Man Called Horse offers a brave an unique performance by Richard Harris as a genteel aristocrat who's captured by the Sioux in 1825. First he's dragged through the land and treated like a dog, eventually he rises in rank to become their chief. The film's look, psychedelic editing, and lack of majestic scoring date it considerably, but Harris's harrowing performance (most notably his suspension in the air by blades stuck in his chest -- a ceremony called The Vow to the Sun, which looks impossibly real on screen here) is unforgettable. The film spawned two ill-regarded sequels in 1976 and 1982.