Dances with Shogun

Rating: Null/10 (17 December 2003)

Or is it? Although the theme of an outsider becoming part of a fading culture has been told countless times - most obvious comparison being the superior Dances with Wolves - Edward Zwick's The Last Samurai is a grand and intelligent film that stands on its own. Our tale begins in 1876 where burnt-out Civil War hero, Captain Nathan Algren (Tom Cruise), spends his days as an unconvincing drunk. He is approached by two of the Emperor's men who want him to come to Japan and train the military in modern warfare in order to put down a Samurai rebellion. The Samurai are fighting to preserve their culture as well as Japan's from becoming westernized. Eventually Cruise is captured and now has theological discussions with Katsumoto, the Samurai leader. The two men are from opposing cultures but share the same values and Cruise starts understanding who and what the Samurai are. The rest you can guess.

As you watch the story unfold, it becomes obvious that Tom Cruise has thrown himself into this role. He read Civil War diaries, Samurai articles, took martial arts, gained thirty pounds, and grew a beard! He also learned some of the language and studied Bushido, a code of loyalty and sacrifice. So you can't fault his preparation. Yet somehow he still comes off as Tom Cruise. And for this movie that's all you need. Think about it: Who would you rather have leading you into slow motion suicide battles? Tom Cruise or some "character". Cruise looks heroically handsome whether he's pointing a rifle, spinning a sword, getting stabbed, or doing the obligatory putting-on-the-armor scene before the final battle. His co-star, Ken Watanabe, brings a dignified presence to the role of Katsumoto. He is also a wounded man, defending the Samurai code even though he senses the end is near. Watanabe acts with conviction and his performance is worthy of award consideration. The rest of the cast is fine, there are no weak links. The movie's look is authentic and the battles are well choreographed and bloody. But there are some pacing problems and an unnecessarily long drawn-out ending. There is also too much of a been-there done-that feeling that is hard to ignore. The Last Samurai is a thoughtful film - meaning it will flop - but it's not the great epic that it aspires to be.