Western culture vs eastern culture

Rating: 10/10 (27 July 2005)

The last samurai truly succeeds in depicting the clash of the western philosophy of "win at any cost" vs the eastern philosophy of "carrying yourself with dignity and honor".
The setting for this theme is Japan in the 1870's. Captain Algren (Cruise), is a war hero, but he has become a suicidal alcoholic and despises himself and his superiors for the way they slaughtered women and children during the Indian wars.
After taking on a mission to train the Japanese army in western warfare he is captured by the samurais he has been paid to kill. In the samurai warrior code he finds the kind of philosophy and dignity that a soldier can live with in victory and defeat. So much so that he switches allegiance to the samurai side even though he knows it is a lost cause and that it can only mean certain death. This being a Hollywood film though, he survives and gets the woman in the end...
Even so the film succeeds on so many levels, including showing emperor Meijis difficult task in combining new technology and knowledge while retaining the Japanese culture and heritage. The bonus material on DVD is also brilliant.