The wilderness can be a brutally lonely and beautiful place.

Rating: 9/10 (11 January 2016)

The Revenant is an almost seemingly impossible movie to make. Long stretches of quiet, lonely time in a world that seems so distant from the one that we live in now. But behind the task of bringing the wilderness to life and giving it the screen time it deserves, is a story almost too good to be true. If there is one duo capable of taking on this task it is the director and cinematographer, Alejandro G. Iñárritu and Emmanuel Lubezki. They brought this movie to life in ways I wound never have imagined. You really feel like Hugh Glass is right there next to you. When he gets injured you feel it, when he succeeds its like you do too. On top of an already beautiful looking movie from top to bottom,the cast is also at top notch. Leo turns in a terrific performance as Hugh Glass, aside from it being a bit overplayed in certain spots and the fact that it is difficult to not see him as the most famous actor on the planet, it is one of his most memorable performances. Will Poulter, and Domhnall Gleeson also turn in strong supporting performances but the real display here is from Tom Hardy. While he has always been good at playing the villain, never has he been so right for a role as this one. You will truly grow to despise his character and love every second of it. While their is not much writing to speak of, the two and a half hour run time seems to fly by. Iñárritu is cementing his name as one of the top directors going right now, and this movie really shows off how far he is willing to go. There are so many little touches that make this move feel as real as possible, from only using natural light to the long cold shoots, Iñárritu pushed these actors to the brink, and I think the movie is better for it. Back to the look of the film, it really is one of the best looking films of all time. Everything is captured with great expanse and fluidity. Some long shot scenes without cuts are mesmerizing and jaw dropping. These two got it right last year with Birdman, and they have taken the talent and moved it outside of the theater. It may be difficult to watch other movies for a while after viewing the Revenant. Nothing will come close to the expansiveness of Iñárritu's wilderness. The realism alone will make most other movies look silly. One of the few problems I thought plagued The Martian was that I never really felt alone up on Mars. Contact always seemed far too accessible. In the Revenant There is a real feeling of desperation and loneliness that is incredibly hard to accomplish. This movie is a real cinema masterpiece, and while not a perfect 10/10 it is still a must see movie this year.