Robert Altman uses the circus-like atmosphere of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show for a commentary on racism and the whitewashing of American history. It’s actually a pretty light-hearted film built around Buffalo Bill’s contentious relationship with Sitting Bull. Paul Newman is reliably good as the exasperated Bill, pushed to his wits’ end by a stubborn but commercially valuable Indian who quietly challenges his authority at every turn. Altman gets preachy only in the final twenty minutes, but I think the turn helps the movie by giving it weight and meaning. It’s harder to forget, especially after Newman delivers a compelling Shakespearean monologue and imbues the final shot with a remarkable facial expression that carries the weight of Bill’s transformation. With Joel Grey, Kevin McCarthy, Harvey Keitel, and Geraldine Chaplin.