The Last Samurai

[Fist and Faith]

Well, I was only able to watch the first hour and 15 minutes so far. One way or another, I'll see the rest this weekend. Really good so far! The whole atmosphere, the scenery, the culture... Not being a big Tom fan, I was very sceptical when I first saw the posters. But many people who feel the same about him said they liked the movie a lot. (I think Kins was one?) Looks like they were right.

[Brinn]

Good flick Fist...I am a big fan of most historical epics and Samurai was a good one. Not on par w/ Braveheart but still very good.

[Fist and Faith]

I finally saw the whole thing, and I'm REAL happy with it! Things got a bit melodramatic at the end, but that's my only complaint, small though it is. My favorite aspect of it is the way of the Samurai, and Cruise's character's observations/comments on it. He's amazed and humbled by the discipline and devotion, as, imo, we all should be.

And hey, Thermopylae is mentioned!!

[Loredoctor]

It's my mother's birthday today and I bought it for her. She loves it.

[Furls Fire]

I wanna see it!!!

Is the violence very graphic tho???

[Byrn]

There are a couple of scenes, just a few seconds. But I thought it was done tastefully. There is a Samurai comminting Seppuku(sp) You see him thrust the knife in, but don't actually see the wound. When he is unable to continue you see his assitant raise his sword and start to fall. The camera goes behind a tree right before the sword removes the head from the shoulders. The next thing you see is the body slump forward.

[Fist and Faith]

I think Byrn said it well - the violence is done tastefully. I mean, there is a big battle at the end, so there's killing. Lots of bullets hitting people, and swords going through. But all quickly, without lingering on nasty sights. It's intent is to show us the intensity, but not the gore.

My favorite parts:

Spoiler

Hearing his thoughts as he writes in his journal, as he feels the spirituality of the village.

And when they're preparing for the battle!! Seeing them meditating, making peace, cleansing their spirits!! Awesome stuff!!!

[Furls Fire]

Oh cool I just don't like all the bloody gore. That's the main reason I couldn't watch more than 5 minutes of Braveheart or Saving Private Ryan...ect.

[danlo]

I agree with your spoilers Fist! I loved this movie and will buy it. I don't buy many videos but this will fit nicely among Braveheart, The Hi-Lo Country, A River Runs Through It, Dances With Wolves & Legends of the Fall.

[Fist and Faith]

Alright danlo!!

[dlbpharmd]

Saw this today on DVD. Overall I enjoyed this movie, although as stated above I'm not a TC fan (Tom Cruise, not Thomas Covenant! )

Braveheart, The Hi-Lo Country, A River Runs Through It, Dances With Wolves & Legends of the Fall.

Danlo, I've seen and enjoyed all of these except for Hi-Lo Country (I've never even heard of that.)

[Nav]

Like Fist, I wasn't a big fan of Tom Cruise and avoided this movie at first. My brother then gave me the DVD for my birthday and I thought it was great. I was touched by the unfailing nobility of the Samurai despite the fact that their fight was, ultimately, always going to be in vain.

It was this film that made me realise that Cruise isn't in the business of making cheesy Hollywood blockbusters anymore. He seems to have moved on to clever, well written films like Vanilla Sky and Minority report. I hear Collateral is very good, too.

[dlbpharmd]

Gossip pages will tell you that Cruise desperately wants an Oscar, especially since Nicole won hers.

[dANdeLION]

I loved the movie. I watched it straight through twice. It had quite an impact, made a bit more because I had just finishes the "Gates Of Fire" book about a week before my wife rented the dvd. I will be buying the dvd soon.

[Fist and Faith]

Four years later, we're talking about this in another thread.

[Montresor]

Good battle scenes - one great panoramic shot in the final battle. Other than that, a pretty average film. The writers seemed to have no idea about samurai culture, Japanese peasant culture, or the relation between the two; the perception of the Imperial family at the time, or almost anything else about the Meiji Restoration, or post-Tokugawa history.

Overly melodramatic, not a shred of subtlety in it, and does not even hold a candle to the majority of samurai films made by the Japanese. Nice and violent, though. But, I can see why a lot of people enjoy it.

[Fist and Faith]

Anyway...

True enough, it lacks in all the ways you mention. Still, great aspects. Watanabe being one. But the scene I spoiled above is great. (No need to spoil at this point.) They're all going to their deaths, and all preparing by meditating; writing a poem; etc. A good lesson for everyone. We're all going to face our own deaths one day. How will we go out? Even if it's better to go kicking and screaming and shitting our pants in fear, it's something we might want to think about ahead of time.

I also love the samurai mindset. "If The Emperor wishes my death, he has but to ask." is a great line. Even more amazing when Cruise says it, and you know he means it. The samurai surpassed the Bloodguard in pure service.

Oh! Also, when Watanabe's son holds off a bunch of guys so the others can get away. Accepting death allows you to accomplish great things, I've heard. This was a good demonstration of that.

[Montresor]

It's a fairly cliched interpretation of samurai values. That's not surprising, as it's a straightforward movie, not really intended to be much more than the usual historical war-epic.

What makes me laugh a little when I see the 'devotion to the Emperor' parts of the film is, most samurai didn't give a flying f*ck about the Emperor. Indeed, most of the population of Japan had absolutely no idea an imperial family even existed until the Meiji Restoration. Loyalty to the Emperor had to be stage-managed and manufactured - including touring the Emperor around the country and showing the populace their new figure-head of state. What many of the rebellious samurai wanted was precisely the opposite of what the film suggests - they sought for a restoration of effective power to certain samurai clans.

The noble ideals of the samurai, which the film gives the impression were universal, were no more real than their interest in the people's welfare. They paid lip-service to both. Disloyalty was actually far more the norm in feudal Japan than service unto death was.

But I'm really digressing . . .

[Fist and Faith]

Heh. Well, I understand your dislike of the film. Actually knowing about the period and culture in question is a good way to not like a lot of movies. Even in fictional periods and cultures. I don't mind changes made to LotR. Too huge to do completely accurately, and the overall was retained. The Sci-fi two-part Earthsea movie, otoh, took a much smaller work, and royally screwed it. If anyone who didn't read the books told me it was a good movie for any reason, I'd still hate the movie, because I know what it was supposed to be.

[AjK]

Oh! Also, when Watanabe's son holds off a bunch of guys so the others can get away.

I like that scene as well, but my favorite part of the movie has nothing to do with specific aspects of Samurai culture or the movie's historical accuracy:

Spoiler

Katsumoto's death scene in which a lifetime of discipline, sacrifice, introspection and personal cultivation results in a moment of true insight and realization. "They are all ... perfect."

The samurai surpassed the Bloodguard in pure service.

Hey, let's not get carried away here. I do believe Samurai slept...