Film

Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson

Name: Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson
Genre: Western, Comedy
Released: 1976
Cast: Paul Newman, Joel Grey, Kevin McCarthy, Harvey Keitel, Allan F. Nicholls

Robert Altman's 1976 Western deconstructs the Buffalo Bill myth with the precision of a surgeon and the bite of a satirist. Paul Newman plays the real man behind the legend—vain, shrewd, ultimately hollow. It's a film about performance, power, and how America manufactures its heroes. Funny and acidic, never quite comfortable.

TMDb rating

2.8

If you liked this

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance1962

Ford's masterpiece about myth-making versus truth, starring Jimmy Stewart and Lee Marvin. Like Altman, Ford sees the West as a story we tell ourselves, and he's fascinated by the gap between the tale and what happened.

But Black and white, deliberate pacing, and the emotional stakes are quieter than you might expect from a Western.

Contempt1963

Godard's film about a film production falling apart. Both films are fascinated by performance, commerce, and ego. Both watch people construct illusions for money while something real dies in the process.

But Highly theoretical, deliberately anti-dramatic. If you're watching for plot momentum, you'll leave frustrated.

Nashville1975

Altman's ensemble masterpiece about American spectacle, ego, and corruption. Same director, same year basically, same savage wit about how we package and sell ourselves. If this film intrigues you, Nashville might haunt you.

But Sprawling, multiple storylines, no clear protagonist. It rewards attention and punishes casual viewing.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford2007

Both interrogate the American myth of the West by showing the machinery of its creation: the newspapers, the impresarios, the ego. Both care about the false self that becomes more real than the real one.

Andrew Dominik's ponderous, painterly film about mythology, celebrity, and the men who chase famous names. It's obsessed with the gap between the legend and the person, and it builds an entire aesthetic around that gap. Absolutely mesmerizing if you're patient.

But Nearly three hours, glacial pacing, frequently incomprehensible sound design. Not a single moment of lightness or humor.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford poster

Johnny Guitar1954

Nicholas Ray's Western with Joan Crawford is a fever dream of myth and performance. Like Altman, Ray is skeptical of the West's self-image, though in a stranger, more expressionistic way.

But Genuinely odd and dated in its gender politics, though that oddness is partly the point.

The Ballad of Little Jo1993

Maggie Greenwald's film about a woman who lived as a man in the Old West. It shares the same revisionist impulse: showing what the myth left out, what had to be erased for the story to work.

But Quiet, austere, sometimes feels more like an essay than a narrative. Not exactly rousing.

McCabe & Mrs. Miller1971

Altman's earlier Western with Warren Beatty. Muddy, morally murky, full of overlapping dialogue. Both films use the genre to interrogate American capitalism and male delusion.

But The sound mix is notoriously muddy (partly intentional). You have to lean in and work for comprehension.

Ace in the Hole1951

Billy Wilder's savage film about a journalist manufacturing a story for profit and fame. Same anatomy of exploitation and ego; same disgust with how media constructs reality for money.

But Deeply cynical and claustrophobic. No character to root for, no comfort offered.

The Westerner1940

William Wyler's Gary Cooper Western is interested in myth and performance too, though played straighter. A good bridge if Altman feels too prickly.

But Much more of a conventional Western. The critique is gentler, the tone more sentimental.

Johnny Suede1991

Tom DiCillo's debut about a man obsessed with his own image and legend. Similar anatomy of masculine delusion and performance; similarly funny and troubling.

But Obscure, stylized, sometimes precious. Can feel like an art film in the worst sense of that phrase.

Better Off Ted2009

Both are about people performing for each other, using spectacle to hide and reveal themselves simultaneously. Both love actors and are suspicious of acting.

Israeli television dramedy about a theatre troupe rehearsing a play. It's funny about performance and ego in ways that feel close to Altman's sensibility. The ensemble cast overlaps and bickers like Altman's, and the show is genuinely fascinated by what acting is and what it costs.

But Not easily available, in Hebrew with subtitles, and deeply specific to Israeli theatre culture. You need patience and goodwill.