Last Stand At Little Big Horn (American Experience)

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: C-     Episode: B-

 

 

It is quite a task to even begin to unravel al the myth and lies associated with the last battle between General Custer and Sitting Bull, but reminiscent of recent mass manipulation of the media with big lies, Bull’s victory became Custer’s eternal martyrdom and part of a reclamation of history to distort it and further ethnically cleanse Native Americans from what is now The United States.  The WGBH/PBS series The American Experience takes on this subject in Last Stand At Little Big Horn.

 

The program runs about an hour, which is a typical episode length for the show, but is quite a tall order to fit so much in such a limited space.  The result is an Emmy Winner for being able to squeeze so much into one show.  Instead of just saying “Custer bad, Indians good” all the time, the show painstakingly documents as much as possible including famous quotes taken from their legendary context and put into historical ones.  It sets the record straight and shows how our democracy has always had disturbing media manipulation.  All in all, it is a fine start in deconstructing one of the greatest myths in U.S. history.

 

The 1.33 X 1 image is a good collage of stills, print material, old film footage and new interviews.  I will add that it is more kinetic and alive than your typical Ken Burns work.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo has no surround information, but is nicely recorded and edited.  Extras are the obligatory weblink and DVD-ROM printable materials, but nothing else.  Too bad, because if any installment needed extras, this is it.  However, the program is exceptional and has plenty moments worth your time.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo