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Like Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise still finds himself a superstar of the silver screen, but nonetheless Oscar-less despite attempts at serious fare to court the golden statue. Could his Far Eastern "Dances With Wolves" be the film to change all that? |
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Like Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise still finds himself a superstar of the silver screen, but nonetheless Oscar-less despite attempts at serious fare to court the golden statue. Could his Far Eastern "Dances With Wolves" be the film to change all that? |
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What's the Plot? 1877. America is a country struggling with it's identity since it's Civil War. Captain Nathen Algren ( Tom Cruise), like the country that he once fought for, is lost and adrift. His part in the Indian Campaigns took his soul and his pride, leaving him "a genuine hero" reduced to telling his story to crowds of people to sell rifles. However, his life is about to change when Colonel Bagley ( Tony Goldwyn ) summons him to a meeting. The Emperor of Japan wishes to hire Algren to train his country's first modern, conscript army and bring Japan into the present, not unlike the Western World. Accepting, Algren travels to Japan with his Sergant, Gant ( Billy Connolly), to train an army that is far from ready. Despite his advice against this action, Algren finds himself leading the ill-prepared army into battle against the Samurai to eradicate them for a more Westernised and modern approach for Japan. An ancient line of warriors, the Samurai, led by Katsumoto ( Ken Watanabe), prevail and Algren is taken captive. Katsumoto, allowing the American to live, intends to learn about his enemy, but does not expect the influence that their beliefs and way of life will have on Algren who finds himself caught in the struggle between the old and the new, right and wrong and two worlds.
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The Review The Last Samurai has Oscar attempt written all over it: the wonderful sprawling vista's ( Director of Photography) , attention to detail ( Costume Designer ), an epic struggle between traditions and progress ( Screenplay ) through to a character's journey to redemption ( Best Actor ) - all the bases are covered to repeat Kevin Costnor's sweeping of "statues of recognition" all those years ago with his Dances With Wolves. Therein lies the problem though. Changing location doesn't guarantee the same results; Westside Story and Romeo & Juliet = yes, Superman and Daredevil = not quite, and Cruise's return to "hero" country doesn't quite cut it. That's not to say that it doesn't deserve your attention, not at all.
It's just that it feels a little bit like, "been there, done that." As Cruise begins to change from miscomprehension to curiosity and finally through to understanding and embracement of his captors / hosts, Costnor's similar experience with the Native Indians lurks behind every scene. The long looks between him and the widow who became one due to his hand; the bonding process with the children and the inevitable winning over one of the more aggressive captors, it's all here. However, all this can be excused due to the sheer grandeur and scale that has been put upon the canvas. |
The characters maybe a little too obvious but at least they're given room to breath and get under your skin, whilst Cruise keeps his "convincing movie star" mantle by being incredibly good with a samurai sword. The battles are well shot with a samurai vs. ninja skirmish being a stand-out moment for action aficionado's as roof tops, walls and everything that's not nailed down is put to use in the fight that seals the American's acceptance within the Japanese culture. The final stand of the Samurai against the now-trained Japanese army lays the corn on possibly too much with slo-mo, close-up's and fast edits all present but the movie's message is still strong enough to shine through and leave you feeling that it was worth it with Oscar nominations at least, if not the actual statue.
STEVE'S SCORE
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Copyright © Steve Murphy 2003
