The Revenant
The Revenant’s one-man show with Leo offers an immersive experience with nature, but more importantly, of the incredible determination of the human body. Yet its technical accomplishments far outpace its depth.
Rating: B
The Revenant promised an epic revenge film set in nature’s toughest conditions and boasts one of the most difficult filming processes in the history of cinema. And while it delivers all that’s been owed to us, it somehow fails to live up to expectations. Digesting this movie requires more than one take. Shot almost completely at dusk, the movie’s visuals are simply dazzling. Whether it’s tinder from fire or a grand waterfall, there is a seamless combination between the camera’s lenses and nature’s formidable beauty in every scene in the film. The cinematography is again fueled by creativity and engages the audience as DiCaprio moves through the beautiful landscape. Needless to say, Mr. Lubezki might be well on the path to his third Oscar.
The true focus of The Revenant is the main character, Hugh Glass, who is played by Leonardo DiCaprio. It’s interesting to see Leo cast in a film such as The Revenant since there is significantly more action and very little dialogue. Yet even though it is a departure from Leo’s typical charming, emotional, and talkative roles, it is quite unclear whether any other actor on Earth could have played Glass. By fighting a bear, eating raw meat, and sleeping in dead carcasses, it seems that Leo has pushed his physical and mental strengths to its limits, and perhaps even beyond that. Glass’ determination to survive and seek revenge is so great that the punishing forces of nature seems irrelevant to him. And as the audience, we cannot help but wonder how he is still alive multiple times throughout the movie. Leo’s struggles in The Revenant makes it almost unbelievable to think that just two years ago, he was the playboy criminal in Wolf of Wall Street. But that’s not to say physical accomplishments were the spotlight, because the emotional perseverance and the sheer will of the human body takes the cake. It’s not often to see such powerful emotions portrayed in a movie of so few words, which adds even further credibility to Leo’s stellar performance.
Despite the incredible visuals and outstanding performance, the story itself is lacks direction. It is a classic revenge plot that was not given room to breathe and grow. Other support cast members were not given a chance to express their characters’ respective motivations and emotions throughout the movie. Lastly, the film ventures into the American-Aboriginals relations territory, but yet again, it was cut short almost as if there was no thought into which direction to go.
Overall, the film is worth the time, especially in theaters, but while it was beautiful, it was thoroughly disappointing.
