The Revenant

So in the circles of people that love movies, my friends, YouTube, etc, this was one of the most anticipated movies of 2015. Everybody suspected this would finally be Leonardo DiCaprio's year to get an Oscar for Best Actor. Even before this movie came out, people were overly praising it. And when it came out, I heard the same thing. People kept raving about it, saying this is Leo's best work.

I guess before I go real in depth with this review, I should talk about the sensation that is Leonardo DiCaprio. For one reason or another, DiCaprio is seen by many people as the next Marlon Brando, and by many is considered one of the best actors out there. But for the longest time, people were outraged that he never won an Oscar for his performances. I think it has a little bit to do with the fact that a lot of people in my generation grew up with Leo, watching his career progress from humble beginnings. And now that he's older, its about time he gets what is his.

Myself, I will not deny that the guy is a talented actor and there's nothing about him personally that I don't like about him, I would just say I think a lot of the hype about Leo comes from his performance in movies people grew up with and are nostalgic about (like Titanic, Romeo and Juliet, and What's Eating Gilbert Grape). Some actors go much longer than Leo did being denied an Oscar doing better performances than he gave leading up to The Revenant. And while his performances in the last 5 years that have sparked so much outrage (like Wolf of Wallstreet, Django Unchained, Etc) were good, I don't think Leo deserved the Oscars people claimed he deserved And on top of it all... I kind of thought it was funny how angry people got every year that Leo didn't get his Oscar that I almost was rooting for him not to win the Oscar for this film.

But did he deserve the Oscar he won and was The Revenant all it was hyped up to be?

The Revenant tells the true story of the frontiersman, Hugh Glass (played by DiCaprio) who in 1823 was part of a fur trapping group collecting pelts in what is now the upper midwest in the dead of winter. Glass travels with his half-Pawnee son Hawk (played by Forrest Goodluck) in the group led by Captain Andrew Henry (played by Domhnall) and including a brutal gruff trapper by the name of John Fitzgerald (played by Tom Hardy).

At the beginning, the group finds themselves ambushed by a war party of Ree Indians. Glass must lead the trapping group out of dangerous territory and back home. However, when Glass falls victim to just the most epic and brutal bear attacks in the wilderness, he sustains critical injuries and is eventually left, buried alive in the wilderness with barely a prayer to survive. However, fueled only with a burning desire for revenge and a particular set of survival skills, Glass manages to climb out of his shallow grave and begin a trial of survival in the harsh Dakota winter. No weapons, no food, barely any clothing, Glass must traverse through harsh weather conditions, roving packs of murderous natives, and critical injuries to make it home safely and enact his revenge.

The first thing I should say about The Revenant is the cinematography. Its a beautiful looking movie. You don't need to be a film buff to recognize the filming for this movie is just on point. Its pretty well documented that only natural light was used in the filming, which had to have been a pain in the ass, but on top of that, there's just some beautiful angles, tracking shots, and visuals throughout this film that its kind of a piece of art more than it is a movie.

That being said, while it is a pretty thing to look at, you can tell that a lot more emphasis was put on the visuals of the film than its pacing.

This is a SLOW movie.

Like... really... really slow. And its really not that the story isn't interesting. Its the pace and how much of this show is centered on showing the sky, and trees, and just scenery all around. And yeah, its pretty, and yeah it makes you want to go camping, but its a two and a half hour long movie and the plot takes a long time to really progress to Glass actually surviving in the wilderness.

Now, the caveat with that is while this movie is very slow and visually bogged down, I never had a moment where I felt the movie was bogged down by performances. The performances are just brought along with the same pace.

This of course is the movie that finally won Leonardo DiCaprio the Oscar he's been coveting for years. And its 100% deserved. Now, I haven't seen the other contenders in that Best Actor race. But based on the comparison of the hype each movie provided, I get the feeling that this is the obvious winner and while I'm sure the other contenders like Bryan Cranston or Michael Fassbender did a great job, it doesn't sound like the competition was that stiff. (I will try and review at least one or two of the other movies that gave a contender for Best Actor soon, suggestions?)

But the reason I am so confident in DiCaprio earning that Oscar is the fact that he not only gave a very convincing and strong performance, he also went through hell and back to prove he was convincing enough. He actually ate a buffalo liver, he filmed in the harsh winter. And while it wasn't confirmed, it really looks like Leo did eat a raw fish. It sounds and looks like this experience was one of the most challenging films he's ever done.

He really takes it to a whole other level and I think he's really getting to a point where, for me, he's finally shedding that boyish Titanic face that I've grown up knowing him as and really developing himself as a chameleon for any character he can portray. Hugh Glass is ten times different than Jordan Belfort and DiCaprio continues to distinguish himself as one of the best actors working today. Like I said before this movie is very focused on the visuals and imagery and on top of that, a lot of the film is Glass just surviving, not really speaking. Dicaprio does this very well, and while the movie goes at a very slow pace, I thought it was really interesting and a good performance from Leo.

But this movie would not be complete with the acting of Tom Hardy. Tom Hardy continues to be a powerhouse when it comes to his roles, and like Leo, he's able to morph into the character he's playing. This character is incredibly different than Max from Mad Max, or Bane from The Dark Knight Rises. The best part of this movie is the fact that John Fitzgerald is not pure evil. He is by no means good, and the things he does is inexcusable, but as you learn about the character, you understand his motives and rationale for doing such evil things. He's the kind of character you love to hate.

At the end of the day, DiCaprio and Hardy just compliment each other very well and are fantastic rivals. I wanted to see them face off, I wanted to see them fight (in what is probably the most gruesome one on one fight you'll see in a while).

Domhnall Gleeson is an actor who has been in a lot of projects as of late. He was in The Force Awakens, and he has been in a lot of high profile projects. He's becoming quite the up and comer and this is no different. Domhnall Gleeson kills it in this film. While the film is not really focused on him, I definitely enjoy every scene with him and like the other two, he can go from a role in The Force Awakens like Admiral Hux to a role like this and do a really, really good job. It would have been a really interesting comparison if I had watched this when it first came out because it came out about the same time as The Force Awakens and it would have been a good comparison.

Like I said before, this movie has a lot of great performances and its definitely a pretty looking movie. But that doesn't really pull away from the fact that this is a lot more focused on the art rather than the story. Its an interesting story but its so dragged out and so focused on how brutal but beautiful the wilderness can be that I had several points in the movie, even in the beginning, looking at how much time was left in the film.

The other aspect of this movie I found interesting was the portrayal and message it had on Native Americans. Portrayal of Natives, especially in the time this movie takes place in, is a sensitive topic. On one hand, these are still people today who are apart of the Arikara (or Ree) tribe and you have to portray them in a sensitive manner that isn't based on stereotypes or racist imagery. But at the same time, they portray a very accurate threat to traders and pioneers of the Dakota area at the time. Scalping was very much a thing and to leave that out to be "politically correct" wouldn't be true to the historical reality of this tribe.

Obviously the movie has a little bit of a message to say about the way Native Americans have been treated and I think they do a good job at accurately portraying natives while trying to remain politically correct. It rides that line pretty well. Its not an absolutely huge part of the movie, but it does come up enough that it is worth talking about. That's just something to epect when you're going into the Revenant.

The story surrounding that Ree war tribe is interesting, though not the strongest part of the movie. They are just kind of an obstacle throughout the film and their story doesn't exactly tie in perfectly into the movie I think it could have. Definitely not a bad performance, I just think they could have done more with them or diminish their part more than it was.

The last thing I'll say is... That was a bad ass Bear attack!

But overall, I liked The Revenant. I'm glad I watched it. I just don't know if I'll ever need to watch it again. Its an experience no doubt, but not one you really need to relive. Once you've watched it, you've pretty much watched all you need to. Its a beautifully shot film that is more of a piece of Art more than a film. The story is good and interesting but not enough to keep me from checking my watch every so often to see how long of the movie I have left. The performances were great but they were dragged out with the movie.

But what are your thoughts? Did you like The Revenant? Comment and Discuss below! You can also send me your thoughts on Twitter @cmhaugen24 as well as send me requests for movies I should review in the future. If you follow me on Twitter you can also get updates on future movie news and reviews coming out of this blog.

I'll leave you with this. Here's an honest trailer talking about the movie nominated for Best Picture during the Oscars last year. Its a pretty funny run through of a lot of really good movies. Enjoy!