Honor, Integrity, Beauty & Self-Discovery

Rating: Null/10 (22 March 2012)

Quite sound in its portrayal of old Japanese customs, traditions and way of life, nicely written by Zwick, convincingly performed by the cast, impressive work by the crew and stunning music by Hans Zimmer, The Last Samurai is a tale of romanticism vs modernism, purity vs corruption, and also a conflict of two different cultures.
The Last Samurai tells the tale of Captain Nathan Algren who, traumatized by his inner demons, is given an assignment to defeat the samurai warriors to clear the road for the westernization of Japan by colonial powers during the late 19th century Japan. Defeated and taken hostage by the samurai, Algren undergoes a complete transformation, discovering the power of the enemy, respecting their way of life, embracing their customs and finally taking up arms with them in fighting the army he originally joined for the preservation of their culture.
Although director Edward Zwick's research of Japanese history, culture, customs, traditions and accent is impressive, the plot could've made a greater impact than it did as the movie was not as emotionally investing as expected. The camera work is really good, both in the battle scenes and in picturing the westernization of 19th century Japan. The landscapes are beautifully photographed and traditions effectively captured. Tom Cruise plays the traumatic Captain Algren and his performance was convincing. Ken Watanabe plays Katsumoto, the samurai leader, and was the most impressive of the cast and did a terrific job. The movie overall keeps a good pace and narrative and scores high on the entertainment level.
Coming to the music, Hans Zimmer has written a brilliant score for the movie that stays true to the Japanese way of music. It weaves itself effortlessly with every event in the movie, striking the right cord at the right time and is one aspect of the film that carries no complaints and without a doubt is another stunning feature in Zimmer's bag.
Overall, The Last Samurai is worth your time. The overly melodramatic ending does betray the movie in some way and the film as a whole may lack the authority and emotional impact of the legendary films of its genre, but this epic tale of honor and integrity is still a ride that in the end felt pretty damn good.