The American buffalo, or bison, is a huge animal. It can weigh more than a ton and measure more than 10 feet wide, excluding its tail. As fascinating as the mammal is, a four-hour series focusing on its origins, decline and revitalization wouldn't exactly be fascinating to a general audience. However, as he has done with countless subjects throughout his career, including the Prohibition Era, the Jazz Age, and the Civil War, prolific documentary filmmaker Ken Burns's examination of the species provides a new perspective on American history and culture.
The two-part docuseries “The American Buffalo” is a story of violence, spiritual trauma and last-minute preservation. The series shows a destructive society that always manages to bandage wounds instead of trying to heal them. Although quite long, with sections that seem repetitive, Burns manages to offer an essential and much-needed work in a time when history is being erased.
Creator: Ken Burns
Stars: Tatanka Means, N. Scott Momaday, George Horse Capture Jr.
Episode 1 of “The American Buffalo,” titled “Blood Memory,” begins in 1805 in the midst of Lewis and Clark’s infamous expedition to the American West. As shown in lush paintings and letters from the explorers, told (in Burns's patented style) via voiceover, the documentary series presents a picture of endless open plains overrun by tens of millions of buffalo. The huge bison have been sacred to indigenous people for centuries. In 1885, which also serves as the stopping point for the first episode, there were fewer than 1,000 buffaloes left. The revered creature was on the brink of extinction and this documentary series tells the story of how the buffalo almost disappeared forever.
Using Burns' zoom technique to bring still photographs to life, “The American Buffalo” guides audiences through the calculated war on buffalo. The episodes illustrate a conflict involving everyone from politicians to settlers. Additionally, the documentary series parallels the decline of the buffalo and the near destruction of indigenous populations who were massacred and dispossessed of their native lands. Indigenous scholars and experts, including George Horse Capture, Jr. of Aaniiih; Dustin Tahmahkera of Comanche; and Pulitzer Prize-winning Kiowa writer N. Scott Momaday present a devastating mourning of a people and the animal they held sacred. “The American Buffalo” analyzes, albeit a little tediously, the reasons behind all this. These motivations arose from colonization, racism, greed, cruelty, and a singular vision of life.
A series packed with images and, in typical Burns fashion, packed with facts, “The American Buffalo” takes the time to examine the relationship between indigenous peoples and the buffalo. When the American Indians killed one of these enormous creatures, every part of the animal, from the bladder to the tongue, was used for food, shelter, or clothing. Instead, the settlers, driven by greed and the desire to claim land, brutally murdered the buffalo, leaving a trail of skinned and rotting carcasses in their wake. This rampage left the indigenous tribes starving and vulnerable to the government, eventually forcing them to take refuge on reservations if they had any hope of surviving.
As the episodes move into the 20th century, Burns incorporates additional photographs and correspondence written by important figures such as President Theodore Roosevelt and Charles Jesse “Buffalo Bill” Jones, who became unlikely conservationists despite their history of buffalo slaughter. . They would join American Indian elders like Latatí and Michel Pablo, as well as pioneering conservationist George Bird Grinnell, to rescue the buffalo from the brink of extinction. However, these men often had very different reasons for preservation, which were deeply rooted in ideals about white masculinity and nationalism.
In addition to highlighting specific points in the 19th century timeline related to the buffalo, including the creation of the Bronx Zoo and the American Buffalo Society, as well as Buffalo Bill's entertaining expedition at Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee, Burns' series describes the ravages of the Western Expansion. Manifest Destiny was the annihilation of indigenous peoples and North American lands.
Extremely exhaustive and at times monotonous, “The American Buffalo” also examines the racial and colonizing mentality that made this chaos inevitable. Since buffaloes obviously can't speak for themselves, give voice to resourceful historians, who are descendants of those who lived through that era, along with historical quotes from a Kiowa woman named Old Lady Horse and Quanah Parker.
Watch The American Buffalo 2023 Tv Series Trailer
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