Very overrated

Rating: 6/10 (9 April 2016)

The scenes in this movie are well-done with spectacular scenery and wonderful visual effects. But the story is very far-fetched, with the protagonist surviving: a grizzly bear mauling; smothering by another mountain man; multiple gunfights and Indian attacks; a ride through the rapids of the Missouri River cloaked in heavy hides; and a fall off of a 300-foot cliff! The Native American element is derivative and done much better in movies such as the far superior Black Robe. Character development is weak. The costumes and settings really look authentic but the story is implausible. For example, after the plunge into a raging river, in winter, our hero is washed ashore at a calm eddy, draped in soaking wet hides. The next scene shows him sleeping next to a fire, all of his hide-clothing now dried out. We're supposed to believe that he retained all of his fire starting equipment through the dunk in the rapids and somehow got a fire going, next to a river with everything soaking wet. That's when I decided this was not a great movie. More nonsense, including the fall off the cliff, was yet to come. Good watch for the action scenes but not in the same league as Black Robe.