The Revenant

Matthew Brady 6/23/2021 3:58:33 PM 8.4

"My heart bleeds. But revenge is in the creator's hands". The Revenant is set in the 1820s, in the uncharted wilderness of America, Hugh Glass set out with a hunting party on an expedition. Glass was mauled by a bear and left for dead but through sheer will and to get back to his family, Glass survived - but that wasn't the only thing on his mind as he set out to payback the men who left him behind. I remember last year around January time when I saw the two images for The Revenant, with Leo holding a Kentucky Flintlock Rifle looking like he's not playing around. Those two images straight away caught my interest. I then found out it was directed by the magnificent Alejandro González Iñárritu who did the Oscar wining "Birdman" (a movie that I personally loved). The Revenant quickly became my most anticipated movie of 2015, as I was looking forward to this movie more than Star Wars, and yes I said it. And after finally seeing the movie myself, I can safely say that I was not disappointed. The Revenant is one of the most stunning, brutal, intense, grizzly movie experience I've ever had. The movie isn't for everyone, but I loved it. Alejandro González Iñárritu is starting to become my 3rd favorite director working today, because he's such an old school director when it comes to storytelling by the use of art. There's been a lot of drama happening behind the scenes of this movie, with the weather stopping the production or if someone made a mistake while filming, the crew must stop for the day and wait until tomorrow, because one mistake could lose a lot of day light for a scene (It was shot in natural lighting). One of the studios suggested that the movie should be shot using computer generated to make things much easier, but luckily Iñárritu said no to the idea by stating, "If we ended up in greenscreen with coffee and everybody having a good time, everybody will be happy, but most likely the film would be a piece of shit." And after seeing the movie I gotta say that it was the perfect decision, because it's very rare for a director today to take that risk and avoid what the studio says. Yes there are some CGI scenes, but the way that the animated effect's blended together with the practical effect's is handled incredibly well. This is one of the best directed movies I've seen in 2015 and I know Iñárritu already won an Oscar already, but I hope he wins another one for this, because never before have I seen a revenge tale presented so unique and utterly magnificent. I respect Leonardo DiCaprio as an actor, but in this movie, he sleeps inside of a dead horse naked and eats raw food from animals, now if this doesn't get him an Oscar, nothing will. He's performance in this movie is what a call 'a silent performance', because Leo barley has that much lines in the movie and the only time he dose get to talk is in a different language (which Leo has said it was tricky to learn the language). DiCaprio has proven time and time again that he's more than a pretty face, but in this movie I only saw Hugh Glass, not DiCaprio. That's my biggest praise I have to give to Leo, as he had to deliver all the emotions, the pain and the tortured soul that Hugh Glass. All of that was all through his face and eyes and trust me when I say this, but it's not easy as you think. We are so use to seeing Leo as the angry, pretty boy billionaire in every movie he's in, but in this movie I thought he was fantastic. He played the man who lost everything. With very little lines he had, he still manages to make a powerful performance that's so far his best. I really hope Leo gets an Oscar for this. Tom Hardy also gave an Oscar worthy performance in this movie. I've heard that some people had trouble understanding him in this movie (or just in everything that he's in really). Sometimes I didn't understand what he said but for the most part I did. But all that a side, I still think he was fantastic in the movie. He really added a lot to his character, because sometimes you understand the things that he dose in movie and yes the things he dose in the movie are wrong, but in a rough environment that these people are in, you would likely do the same. I'm not sure if he would get in for best supporting actor, but I hope he dose. I'm running out of things to say about Emmanuel Lubezki breathtaking cinematography. The camera work and how he makes the camera feel like a character of it's own is seriously impressive. Lubezki captures nature on film, that shows it's beauty and it's unpredictable surprises. The people running the Oscars should just give Lubezki his third Oscar right now, because he's going to take that third trophy home. For flaws I had with the film it that some of the character logic towards the end of the movie didn't make that much senses to me. And that's it. Overall rating: "The Revenant" is one of most intense and stunning movies I've seen in 2015. The score is haunting, the editing was top notch and that bear attack scene was just terrifying. I mean how the hell did they do that? I don't know about you, but I honestly can't stop thinking about this movie. It's one of those movies that sticks with you after it's over and it isn't going away anytime soon.

mattwilde123 6/23/2021 3:57:55 PM 8.4

This is the best film I have seen all year (since 'Birdman', in fact, the previous film by Innaritu). It was expertly directed. The use of natural light really adds to the danger of the environment that surrounds Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio). Innaritu loves the camera to pan around objects and people to create a sense of awe and spectacle. Leonardo DiCaprio really did deserve all the awards that he got for this role. I thought it was his best film by far. The realism and intensity of his performance really comes through. The story was gripping throughout the whole film and I found the twists and turns very interesting. ★★★★½

r96sk 6/23/2021 3:58:42 PM 8.4

Utterly riveting. It's no surprise this one got/gets rave reviews - it's outstanding! <em>'The Revenant'</em> isn't necessarily edge-of-your-seat viewing, though it's still a massively impactful watch as you feel every hit of Hugh Glass' journey. It's rather gruesome and bloody, while it also has a few top notch action sequences. Leonardo DiCaprio is easily one of my favourite actors of all-time, the man is simply a sensational actor - I'm yet to see an anything less than tremendous film involving him. I wouldn't even say this is his greatest performance, and that's saying something as DiCaprio is absolutely superb here. Away from the main man, Tom Hardy is also part of this film. He is great, as I always expect from him. He and DiCaprio are fantastic actors. Hardy portrays John Fitzgerald, brilliantly. However, his character isn't written perfectly - not poorly by any stretch, he's just a bit flip-floppy at the beginning. The way the story creates itself involving Fitzgerald being where he is isn't as amazing as it could've been - very minor criticism, mind. Another small complaint is the ending, there's nothing truly wrong with it at all but I, personally, would've concluded things about 10-15 minutes prior - there's a quality, almost Quentin Tarantino-esque, scene involving horses that would've made for a more thrilling end shot. To finish, everything's beautifully crafted together visually, from a filmmaker's viewpoint, too. A marvellous film no doubt, certainly a must-watch!