Crazed, animalistic, and committed

Rating: 9/10 (17 January 2016)

Still, for as much as the environment is in the spotlight, DiCaprio and Hardy are undoubtedly the two consistent driving forces. Rendering John with an inherent craze, Hardy employs the same commutative eyes from The Dark Knight Rises and Mad Max: Fury Road, except behind a barbaric wad of facial hair, almost biker gang-esque—making his less morally inclined reflection of Hugh into a dangerously unpredictable survivalist. Not to be outdone, DiCaprio has reportedly called this role the most taxing of his career. Upon research it's easy to see why: not only did the vegetarian actor consume a hunk of raw bison's liver, but he also had to learn to properly shoot a musket, build a fire, speak both Pawnee and Arikara languages, and study ancient healing methods. But you don't need to hop on Google to fully appreciate DiCaprio's commitment, just witnessing the actor crawl through the snow and dirt, devour a raw fish—in a enormous fur coat, scraping bone marrow from an already-devoured corpse, the actor is evidently immersed in this animalistic transformation. And, interestingly enough, DiCaprio, speaking maybe 20 or so lines in the entire film, likely made the conscious decision to opt for a more physically demanding role when turning down the lead for Steve Jobs and Sorkin's witty dialogue. After all, since The Academy didn't award his vulgar wolf the year prior it only makes sense that now he actually has to become one.
FULL REVIEW HERE: indieadam.com/2016/01/17/the-revenant-2015-review-indieadam/