History Film / DancesWithWolves

* DangerousDeserter: John is treated as one when the Army re-establishes itself at Soldier Fort/ Fort Sedgwick.

* TheAmericanCivilWar: Shown in the beginning of the film, shown to be authentically as cruel and barbaric as it actually was.

* ReasonableAuthorrityFigure: Lt. Elgin, who heads the squad that captures Dunbar, tries to keep his men in line, and ensure Dunbar is treated humanely. Unfortunately, nobody told the Sioux rescue party this, and he's the first to die in their raid.

* HeyItsThatGuy: Kevin Costner falls in love with [[Series/BattlestarGalacticaReimagined Laura Roslin]].
** Working both ways, of course; a popular {{fan nickname}} for MaryMcDonnell's character in ''Battlestar Galactica'' was "Stands-with-an-Airlock".
** Don't forget [[Film/StreetFighter Sagat!]]
** A lesser example: The Pawnee BloodKnight is Wes Studi, better known as Magua in TheLastOfTheMohicans.

** [[spoiler: The Sioux have already gone when the military's Pawnee scouts find their winter camp, but we are then told that 13 years later, the last of the Sioux were forced surrender to the United States Government.]]

* DrivenToSuicide: John in the beginning, after learning he's going to have his foot amputated. The Confederates manage to miss him even though he charges right past them.

** A lesser example: the Pawnee BloodKnight is Wes Studi, better known as Magua in TheLastOfTheMohicans.

* KickTheDog: The Pawnee shoot dogs with arrows, and the soldiers that eventually occupy the fort never miss an opportunity to kick any dog they find. [[spoiler:Their opening act is to kill Dunbar's beloved horse, leaving the body to be picked by crows. Eventually, they find and kill Two Socks in front of John just for the fun of it.]]

* [[SuicideByCop Suicide By Enemy Army]]: John enlists the aid of the enemy army to help him deal with his life situation. They suceed, but not in the way he imagined they would.

* {{Jerkass}}: Corporal Spivey lies about finding John's/Daces With Wolves' journal, and then later [[CrossesTheLineTwice uses it to help out at the latreen]].

** Though arguably they show a darker side as well. There's a scene (in the extended version at least) where the Sioux have just killed a group of white men who were wastefully hunting buffalo for only their skins. We're left to wonder whether the white men really deserved to ''die'' for what they had done, and Dunbar is disturbed to see severed white hands and the Sioux celebrating with abandon.

** All oddly {{justified|Trope}}, along with [=McDonnell=]'s back nude scene.

** Actually, the decision to include only one gender in the language was intentional, to reduce the complexity of what the actors needed to learn/memorize for the roles.

[[caption-width-right:242:...Tatanka...]]

* [[SuicideByCop Suicide By enemy Army]]: John enlists the aid of the enemy army to help him deal with his life situation. They suceed, but not in the way he imagined they would.

* ShootTheDog: A particularly heartbreaking example. [[spoiler:The soldiers shoot and kill Two Socks for fun, with John watching. He tries to strangle one of them in retaliation but to no avail.]]

* CoolOldGuy: Ten Bears. While he usually says little, he pays John the highest honor that he can - by offering to talk a while to try and keep him from [[spoiler:leaving the tribe.]]

* KickTheDog: The Pawnee shoot dogs with arrows, and the Union soldiers shoot wolves with rifles.

* CoolOldGuy: Ten Bears

* ShootTheDog: A particularly heartbreaking example.

A film made in 1990 set in the 1860s, directed by and starring KevinCostner, about a United States Army lieutenant who gets positioned in a fort on the expanding western frontier. Due to unfortunate circumstances, the lieutenant becomes the only person occupying the fort and befriends a wild wolf while waiting for replacements to come. After some brief hostilities, he also comes into good terms with a neighboring Sioux Tribe who nickname him "Dances With Wolves" for his relationship with the wolf that hangs around the fort, whom he names "Two Socks".

* ShootTheDog: A particularly heartbreaking, example.

[[quoteright:242:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Dances_with_Wolves_poster_2505.jpg]]

** Working both ways, of course; a popular {{fan nickname}} for [=McDonnell=]'s character in ''Battlestar Galactica'' was "Stands-with-an-Airlock".

* BittersweetEnding: Dances With Wolves is saved by the Sioux, but feels that he has to go off Stands With A Fist to live on their own away from the tribe.
** The Sioux have already gone when the military's Pawnee scouts find their winter camp, but we are then told that 13 years later, the last of the Sioux were forced surrender to the United States Government.

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: The Pawnee, who attack both the Sioux and [[DidNotDoTheResearch Stands With A Fist's family]].

* DidNotDoTheResearch: Those complaining of this film being a MightyWhitey. The films is not about Dunbar saving the Sioux, or being a better one of them than they are. If anything, Dunbar comes to believe that the Sioux way of living is at least as good as his previous life, if not better.

* OneSceneWonder: Major Fambrough, the crazy (possibly from either Syphilis or Lead Poisoning) military officer that gives Dunbar his orders, and thinks that it's the time of KingArthur.
--> "Sir knight! I'll have you know that, [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments I have just pissed in my pants... And there is nothing anybody can do about it]]."