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Dances with Wolves

1990 · directed by Kevin Costner · 181 min
25,715 feet · Prominence
298th of 24,106 films scored
Not coveredNo Rewatchables episode on file.

How this film scores

Draw79

Lifetime worldwide gross $424m, re-releases included; about $1.07bn in 2026 money.

Rank161 of 11,051In 19904 of 147

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise90

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics80 baseAwards98 signal → +10 lift

Oscars7 won Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing, Original Score, Sound5 nominated Actor, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Costume Design, Production Design
Golden Globes2 won Best Picture, Screenplay2 nominated Lead acting, Supporting acting
BAFTAs5 nominated Best Picture, Directing, Lead acting, Screenplay, Craft and other
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy60

Judged directly: Big Oscar winner, faded relevance.

Verdict60 of 100IMDb8 from 308kWikipedia47k views a monthAge36 years

On the listsNational Film Registryevidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 549 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 79 praise 90 legacy 60averages 76, placing it at25,715 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

Whose apex this is

▲ Kevin Costner▲ Graham Greene

In these careers — elevation for this film

Kevin Costner21,601 ftMary McDonnell19,627 ftGraham Greene19,375 ftRodney A. Grant18,326 ft