A harsh, brutal and engaging depiction of one man's willpower

Rating: 8/10 (21 December 2015)

The trailer for Revenant is very misleading. It would have you believe this film is full of fighting scenes, battles and generally action. It's not. It's mostly about one man's struggle against nature. Overcoming his weakness and injuries in his drive for revenge and survival. The majority of the film is slow-paced and focused on the incredible willpower of the protagonist.
Seeing this film on the big screen can be overwhelming. The brutal, realistic scenes, close-up shots of actors' faces, perfectly showing the struggle and pain they experience, and the incredibly harsh environment, make for one of the most memorable cinematic experiences this year. As can be expected from DiCaprio and Hardy, the acting is phenomenal. One can almost feel the pain, the cold, the hunger and the fear they experience. The camera captures all this perfectly, as well as showing beautiful scenery and biting winter weather, all filmed using only natural light.
The plot, despite being quite simple, keeps the viewers on the edge of their seats, rooting for the hero's survival and admiring every time he manages to get up and keep going.
The one criticism would be about the realism of all the misfortune, that befalls DiCaprio's character. There are points where it is really too much for one man to endure and the opinion of the antagonist, that "there is no way he could survive that" seems quite correct.
Another thing to note: this is not a film for the squeamish. The graphic, bloody scenes involving both humans and animals do not hold back in realism.