Tom Cruise is a big player when it comes to movies and it is because of his celebrity and current girlfriend, that make his acting over looked (No Oscar for or Jerry McGuire nor nomination for Rain Man).
I�ve always thought of Tom Cruise as a great actor but when I heard �Samurai� and �Cruise� in the same sentence, I rolled my eyes. How could he ever incorporate that cheesy smile we see in Top Gun or the even cheesier lines we here in Mission Impossible into this type of film? The answer is simple, he doesn�t.
Tom Cruise relishes in the role as Nathan Algren, an American Captain sent to train the Emperor�s Army to help wipe out the Samurai. Only into a month of training when his men are ordered to go into battle and attack the Samurai. All the unqualified men are killed except Algren himself. Algren is taken by the Samurai as a prisoner, but soon and a beautiful relationship between Algren and the Samurai leader Katsumoto (Ken Watanabe) unfolds. They learn from each other many things, such as life, honour and battle. Algren himself learns of a life he doesn�t understand but we know one he yearns for� Want to know what happens to Algren and the Samurai? See the film. If you don�t like Cruise, watch it as you�ll begin to see how talented he is. If you love Cruise as he is, watch this, you�ll love him even more.
The Last Samurai has indeed been accused of being coated with a nice gloss for it sweep many Oscars but personally I see no gloss just talent and I hope it does very well at the Oscars. Looking at the shortlist of Best Actor nominees, Cruise does face stiff competition (Sean Penn in Mystic River is a clear favourite already) but I have no doubt that the Academy will see how greatly Cruise has immersed himself into his character as well as the film and will finally award this man with an Oscar he so truly deserves.
As with all Tom Cruise films there will be lovers (like myself) and haters of the work. The Last Samurai is funny, poignant and has fantastic battle scenes to boast about. I pity the person who does not enjoy this beautiful film.