No, the last samurai is NOT Tom Cruise!!!

Rating: 8/10 (13 January 2004)

In The Last Samurai, we are treated to a glimpse of the effect that modernisation had on the "old ways" of the world. We are given just enough of a taste of what things were like that we begin to dread their eventual, inevitable demise. Stealing the show is Ken Watanabe's Samurai general, who starts the movie with a vision of a white tiger fighting for his life - a motif that comes back during his later attempts to sum it up in poetry. This white tiger is revealed to be the deeply damaged American Captain, Nathan Algren. Captain Algren, despite all that you may hear, a wonderful character, and very well played by Tom Cruise (one of the nicest actors I have ever heard of). He is, in my opinion, representative of the conscience of the film; and it's destiny. He is cursed to live on while others may die around him, he is atoning for the sins of his time. He even puts this into words: "I should have died so many times". The unlikely escapes throughout the film (yes, there are many) as well as his unerring ability to pick up the ancient art of swordfighting over two seasons are merely, as far as I am concerned, the forces of his destiny at work - he does meet his destiny, but it is not through a death on the battlefield; he achieves it through standing up at last for what he believes in above all else - honour, and acts as a saviour for the honour of the Samurai. As I have said, this is my reading of this film's point - of course he is an unlikely hero, but it not Cruise who is the last samurai; it is Watanabe. Algren is an act of fate - the catalyst for the samurai's salvation and adherence to their code of honour. He is prepared to die but does not fear death, he is told. I believe it is this key issue of Captain Algren's >secondary< role in the events that occur (he sets nothing in motion, remember, until the rescue of the general, so that the general can lead his samurai), that makes the effect of this movie more profound than you would have thought.
Having said all that (and there was a lot of it) this is in the end a blockbuster vehicle for it's star. He has so much screen time it's scary, but this is due to the fact that the plot is seen through his eyes and hence we are taken on the same journey he experiences towards his own redemption. That having been said, the casting is entirely wonderful; especially in the samurai camp, though arch "baddie" Omura is excellent too. I was especially pleased also, to see "that guy out of ring; you know, the psychic ex husband" in a completely different role as the (sadly) hilariously named "yujio" - I have worked in computer game sales for a while, so I hope you'll forgive this slur on a perfectly reasonable name. Not a weak acting performance to be found, as far as I'm concerned!
It is beautifully, if not particularly innovatively shot, too - a couple of shots smacking (maybe too much) of composition.
I do, however, have several complaints to make (hey, what else is the internet for, huh?)
I) Too much "meaningful" dialogue. In a complex movie like this I can't help feeling that some of the dialogue could have done with a once over by the thousands of ghost writers there must be in Hollywood.
II) The ending would, I feel, have benefitted greatly from not showing Cruise at all, but fading out the way it came in, on Japan's gorgeous horizon.
III) I don't like narration as a means of showing internal dialogue, but I can't suggest a better way of doing it. Maybe I should shut up?
IV) The scale of the battle scenes was all messed up (that didn't look like 4000 troops to me coming round the hill!)
V) (the big one) WE DON'T NEED A LOVE INTEREST, FOR GOD'S SAKE! I didn't buy this at all. Just unnecessary.
I hope you've found my views interesting, I'm always open to discussion. Give us a mail. In conclusion, I would say that it is really worth seeing this film, it won't change your life, or reveal some secrets about the universe to you, but that isn't what going to the movies is all about. You want spectacle, a well shot and acted film, and to share in one man's journey to redemption I would recommend this film with the utmost pleasure.
See you later.
Algo.
P.S. Remember - the use of machine guns at the end foreshadows the changing of warfare forever - no more cavalry charges!