"It features action and drama, with well timed humour intermittently, that all comes together to produce what I will happily call the film of the year."
In my experience with some of the classic Akira Kurosawa (Throne Of Blood) films, I've become somewhat of a fan of Samurai movies. The fighting ability that was so skillfully crafted over thousands of years, the code of honour that runs so deep they would die rather than break it; and the mere fact that in the face of all that they can still remain human, everything about the Samurai blends together to create a sense of awe that no fantasy creations, such as Aliens, Orcs or even reborn dinosaurs could ever hope to match. It was for this very reason that I was eagerly anticipating Director Edward Zwick's (Glory) latest epic, The Last Samurai, a film that was promising to revel in all of those areas that make samurai movies so great.
The problem is that when I go into a film with expectations soaring so high I nearly always find a disappointment. Yet The Last Samurai was able to not only meet my expectations, but exceed them, and exceed them enough to become my favorite film of 2003.
The Last Samurai stars Tom Cruise (Minority Report) as Nathan Algren, a Civil War veteran who is hired by the Japanese government to train their soldiers for a battle against Japan's legendary Samurai warriors, but when the arrogance of his superiors causes the initial battle to go terribly wrong, Nathan is captured by the Samurai who's leader had become intrigued with his new enemy. Forced to stay in the village by harsh winter conditions Nathan begins to observe the samurai, becoming moved by their code of honour and deep sense of dedication, until eventually, in the village of his enemy, he discovers the inner peace that his life has been devoid of for too long.
Now I admit that you cannot deny the similarities between that plot, and the plot used in Dances With Wolves, but, you know what? I haven't seen Dances With Wolves since I was a child, so my experience with The Last Samurai has not been hindered in the slightest by that fact. Besides which The Last Samurai works well enough on its own merits in being a breathtaking achievement in the world of modern film making. Zwick has proven himself with this film to have a talented eye for picking the perfect shots, making use of both stylish camera work and the films breathtaking location. Whether you're seeing a scene set in the winter months, when snow and ice cover the mountains in a blanket of beauty, or the spring months when the blossoms sprout onto the trees to produce a world of vibrant colour, at either time the film works as evidence that Zwick has an eye for landscapes that would have made Kurosawa himself proud.
These visuals work as more than just a few pretty images though. They actually succeed at subtly increasing the resonance of each and every scene. Working in conjuncture with a profound musical accompaniment, the visuals end up working on many layers. The beauty of the mountain scenery alone mimics the tranquility Cruise's character experiences there, grabbing the audiences attention in a way that helps them to experience everything that his character is feeling.
The thing is that I remained unsurprised amidst such breathtaking grandeur. I went into the film expecting a stylish looking film, wrought with emotion, but lacking anything truly memorable. Something to do for Samurai movies what Ridley Scott'sGladiator did for Roman epics. What I wasn't expecting was a film so rich in it's storytelling nature. It's just that when The Last Samurai was first announced the thought of Tom Cruise playing The Last Samurai seemed to indicate your average Hollywood arrogance at work, something a friend of mine was more than happy to point out. Yet The Last Samurai is one of the most unbiased films to come out of America in a good long time, with America being portrayed by the shameless arms dealers intent on power, and of course the cowardly generals who insist on sending inexperienced men forward, giving themselves plenty of time to run should the situation get out of hand.
Nathan Algren is a character who shines in this regard, a complex character traumatized by the events of his past. He was a man who found himself on the frontier, a man forced to fight in frequent battles with the Indians, and being given orders to commit countless atrocities. These events have left their mark on him, giving him frequent nightmares and pushing him into alcoholism. Then, by the time he's forced to commit the same acts again with the Samurai, he's lost all of his humanity on the matter, doing anything he's asked as long as he receives payment in the end. To say that this is all in condemnation of the recent war in Iraq, which is an argument I have heard, takes a stretch of the imagination that I am unwilling to make. Nevertheless the film gives enough focus to these character traits that it proves itself to have a social conscience, commenting on any war where one nation invades another weaker nation; with attempts to quell the customs therein.
Cruise handles himself well in the midst of such heavy material though. I know he's a superstar and so it's near impossible to forget that he's Tom Cruise, and I know that it's unpopular to actually respect a superstar, but I've always felt that Cruise is a terrific actor. Sure he can occasionally be typecast into his trademark character in such rent payers as Mission Impossible and Minority Report, but when he sets his mind to it he can achieve great things. In The Last Samurai he gives what is definitely his finest performance in a good long while, simply oozing intensity from behind his world weary eyes, while simultaneously giving the more romantic scenes the quiet dignity they require.
This quiet dignity is something that a lot of the cast display though, and while I don't want to make too many Kurosawa references, for fear of cheapening Zwick's own achievements, it can't be helped because like Kurosawa Zwick has managed to get raw acting out of his cast. The characters rarely say what they are thinking, and yet their thoughts and feelings are still shown well through the extremely expressive acting of the main cast members. Ken Watanabe (MacArthur's Children), who plays The Last Samurai of the title, shines best in this regard. Not only does he do very well at getting across the quiet nobility of the character, and not only does he share a great deal of chemistry with Cruise, but in one crucial moment where he first sees Algren he simply stares in confounded wonder. The look on his face couldn't have been more perfect, never exaggerated, but still getting across every nuance of curiosity that the character is feeling.
Also Taka, the woman looking after Algren, is always polite, smiling and never saying a bad thing to his face, yet thanks to the performance by Koyuki (Spy Sorge) you get tell that the character is set to burst from all of her despair. It's an excellent thing when a supporting cast member is not only capable, but dedicated enough to give a performance as honest as this, and in The Last Samurai you will find a lot of them.
What this all builds up to is a series of increasingly spectacular battles, where again the films visual style comes into play. Some shots work as the very embodiment of atmosphere, such as the Samurai riding out of the mist (I know seen it before, but never with so much class), or the hundreds of arrows flying through the air (Again, much more impressive than the similar shots in Timeline). Yet it's the battles themselves that end up being the most spectacular due to the brutal realism that permeates each and every one of them. This film features the most shocking, emotional battles of the year, and, despite the fact that Zwick's quick cutting prevents the actual violence from being too nasty, end up putting anything in Return Of The King to shame.
I have heard complaints though, complaints that Cruise can't handle these action scenes because he's not believable as a samurai, but I don't see that as a problem. Admittedly I did think that some of Cruise's moves seemed a little too Western, but this was before I remembered that he was playing a western character. He may have lived for a year with Samurai, even trained with them, but he never actually became a samurai. He never fully accepted their treatment of women, nor their death before defeat mentality, and obviously in just one year wouldn't have become a fully blown samurai. Nevertheless his fights are deftly handled, and when combined with the almost surgical techniques of the samurai, end up being amazing.
In order to summarize this review all I can think of to say is that The Last Samurai is very much an old school samurai movie with modern battle sequences. It features action and drama, with well timed humour intermittently (especially Billy Connoly) that all comes together to produce what I will happily call the film of the year, and a film so far ahead of the competition that it's scary.
"Amazing performances color the rich and mostly accurate portrayal of the last days of the Samurai. For a movie of paradoxes, it leaves one without a doubt in their mind of the strength and beauty of this culture." ByDerek May
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