Director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu is at it again in his
new film The Revenant. There is a lot
to like in the film. The movie tells the story of Hugh Glass (Leonardo
DiCaprio) who sets out on a path of revenge when his confidant, John Fitzgerald
(Tom Hardy), kills his son and leaves him for dead. The Revenant’s biggest assets are the two leads. DiCaprio and Hardy
both turn in stellar performances and get you to care about two characters that
could not be further apart from each other. Even though he does not have a lot
of lines to work with, Leonardo DiCaprio is at the top of his game in this one
and delivers a deep, emotionally driven performance that is definitely Oscar
worthy. Almost outdoing DiCaprio is Tom Hardy. His Fitzgerald always draws your
eyes to where he is because of the heaviness of his performance. There are a
few scenes where Hardy even steals the light from his counterpart. In addition
to the two leads, Domhall Gleeson (Star
Wars: The Force Awakens) and Will Pouter (Maze Runner) also turn in admirable performances in supporting
roles. One thing Inarritu does masterfully is his camera work. He can make you
in awe and feel as if you are right there in the movie with these characters.
As he did with Birdman, his
transitions are smooth and where he chose to do edits and cuts were not really noticeable
so it didn’t feel like you were watching a movie. The Revenant was shot using only natural light, and it is beautiful.
This isn’t some kind of CGI spectacle, this movie is a spectacle of the natural
kind. The scenery is absolutely breath taking. Unfortunately, there were some issues that
were rather glaring in the film. The biggest flaw is the length of the film.
One could argue that The Revenant
could be 20-30 minutes shorter and be an even better film. At times it felt as
if you were never going to see the climax of the movie. The last gripe with
this movie is that they are some plot points that seemed too easy for the characters.
Some things just so happened to work out for them.
Conclusion:
The Revenant is a spectacle in its
own right. The two leads of Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy turn in Oscar
worthy performances, while director Alejandro Innarritu works his magic again
as he draws in the audience with his almost flawless camera work. Even though
the story has its problem, and the movie could have been shorter. The Revenant is a satisfying movie going
experience. The film is not a must see, but it is definitely as close as it
gets.
SCORE 8/10 -
VERY GOOD
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