Read Time:1 Minute, 29 Second
It’s
been quite a while since I was especially thrilled by a Tom Cruise movie, so I was a bit
skeptical about this powerful epic—despite the fact that it has the awards committees abuzz. Still,
curiosity got the best of me…
In The Last Samurai, Cruise plays
Captain Nathan Algren, a soldier well known for his fearlessness in battle against the
Native Americans. Algren is offered a job in Japan, training the Japanese army to fight
against the samurai army that threatens the country’s modernization. When he leads his
unprepared soldiers into battle, Algren is captured and taken in by the family of samurai
leader Katsumoto (Ken Watanabe) who’s eager to learn from his enemy.
Tired
of always fighting against the rebels—and haunted by memories of his battles against
innocent Native Americans—Algren is drawn to the samurai life, and he begins to learn the
language and embrace the culture.
I’ll admit that I was surprised to be
captivated by The Last Samurai, but it was beautifully done. It’s long (just over
two and a half hours), and it’s not exactly fast-paced (except for the battle scenes),
but I was almost immediately drawn in—and it managed to hold my attention until the end. The story
is powerful yet touching—and it has a spectacular score to match.
Ken Watanabe definitely
deserved all those award nominations for his performance as Katsumoto. And even Tom Cruise, who I’ve always seen as a bit of an
over-actor, does a respectable job. In fact, I believe the movie would have gotten much
more attention, had it not been overshadowed by The Return of the
King.
It may be long, but The Last Samurai is well worth the time commitment.
Kristin Dreyer Kramer has been writing in some form or another (usually when she was supposed to be doing something else) since the ripe old age of ten—when she, her cousin, and their two Cabbage Patch Dolls formed the Poo Authors’ Club. After a short career in advertising, Kristin got sick of always saying nice things about stuff that didn’t deserve it—so now she spends her days criticizing things, and she’s much happier for it.
Since creating NightsAndWeekends.com in February of 2002, Kristin has spent her life surrounded by piles and piles of books and movies—so many that her office has become a kind of entertainment obstacle course.
As if her writing and editing responsibilities for N&W.com weren’t enough to keep her out of trouble, Kristin also hosts a number of weekly radio shows: Reel Discovery, Shelf Discovery, and On the Marquee. She’s also a proud member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (CriticsChoice.com), the Central Ohio Film Critics Association (COFCA.org), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS.org), and the Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC.Wordpress.com).
Kristin lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Paul, and their daughter, Anna. She welcomes questions, comments, and fan mail at kdk@nightsandweekends.com.
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Kristin Dreyer Kramer has been writing in some form or another (usually when she was supposed to be doing something else) since the ripe old age of ten—when she, her cousin, and their two Cabbage Patch Dolls formed the Poo Authors’ Club. After a short career in advertising, Kristin got sick of always saying nice things about stuff that didn’t deserve it—so now she spends her days criticizing things, and she’s much happier for it.
Since creating NightsAndWeekends.com in February of 2002, Kristin has spent her life surrounded by piles and piles of books and movies—so many that her office has become a kind of entertainment obstacle course.
As if her writing and editing responsibilities for N&W.com weren’t enough to keep her out of trouble, Kristin also hosts a number of weekly radio shows: Reel Discovery, Shelf Discovery, and On the Marquee. She’s also a proud member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (CriticsChoice.com), the Central Ohio Film Critics Association (COFCA.org), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS.org), and the Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC.Wordpress.com).
Kristin lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Paul, and their daughter, Anna. She welcomes questions, comments, and fan mail at kdk@nightsandweekends.com.
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