A Flat Tire With Plenty of Holes

Rating: 3/10 (18 December 2003)

I would say this movie held my attention until Tom Cruise is captured by the rebel band of Samurai. From that point forward it was all down hill. Not only is the dialogue mundane when it is trying to be prophetic, but it also leaves you feeling totally dispassionate about the characters.
Tom Cruise was a bad choice. He is supposed to be a man of stature and experience - a man who has seen the worst of the Indian Wars. Instead what we have is Tom Cruise being Tom Cruise. Sometimes drunk, sometimes sober. His natural build does nothing to enhance his credibility, either. I see no real emotion from Cruise in the character, but simply a man trying to be somebody else. It just wasn't believable.
One thing I would ask my fellow reviewers is: Don't you feel the ending was totally over-blown?
I found it personally insulting when, in the film's final battle, both main characters are shot all to Hell by bullets flying everywhere. There is what is supposed to be an emotional scene between the two leads holding each other at death, which is so silly and over the top that it makes me wonder what the author was thinking. Then Cruise, after having been shot full, is seen staggering into the Imperial Palace in a clean uniform. He respectfully hands over the rebel sword to the Emperor. That triggers an emotional dialogue between him and his ambassador. It is a meaningless conversation about their past coming to an end and the tragedy of it all. It is supposed to be deep and meaningful. All it really succeeds in doing is dragging the movie on for another five minutes. Finally Cruise, (because Hollywood believes its' audiences just can't stomach a sad ending) is filmed walking off into the sunset, with trusty horse in tow, to the quiet little village of the rebels. At least I had a good laugh here...
I wish I could stay so healthy after being shot up so well. I wish I could find meaning in dialogue that has no sense of real human feeling or even so much as a complete understanding of what the characters are really suffering through.
Too bad David Lean, Stanley Kubrick, or John Huston aren't around today. If they were, this film could have been a masterpiece handled by men who could appreciate a story like this. All we have is a typical example of a Hollywood film that carries a good concept, but is never fully explored. Hollywood today should stay with action films and comedies. Serious drama is not something the industry seems capable of exploring - thanks in part to the cash culture of the business.