Outstanding Performances and Excellent Cinematography Highlight Cruise Film.

Rating: Null/10 (13 July 2004)

For me, one of the most outstanding films this past year was "The Last Samurai". Tom Cruise was excellent as the disillusioned civil war hero whose personal courage erupted so naturally on the battlefield despite his obvious hatred for the carnage that is always the result of such a desperate struggle.
Ken Wantanabe was simply majestic as the Samurai war lord and a worthy successor to the popularity of the late Toshiro Mifune. Shin Koyamada was very moving in his performance, particularly the sequence where he is humiliated by the government soldiers and his hair is cut off. And I couldn't help but find the young boy who came to love Algren as charming as my own grandson, who is half Japanese.
I also enjoyed the cinematography and CGI, especially the scene when Algren's ship is entering Tokyo bay of the late 19th century. I also empathized with the samurais' struggle to prevent the loss of their way of life. Omura's singleminded greed seemed to reflect the dark influence of capitalism on a culture emerging from centuries of social tradition.
Critics complained about the cheesy ending but at least it softened the conclusion of the film for those people, like my husband, a Vietnam Vet who suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, who find a "downer" ending depressing.