It's been a while since I've shared a movie review, but this one is well worth the wait. Took the wife to see this latest "guy flick" and this may be one of the best movies I have ever seen. Some will compare it (and rightfully so) to the 70's classic "Jeremiah Johnson" and this one had me riveted to the screen from start to finish. The wifey said there were a couple of slow spots, but I felt the movie flowed easily and I did not find myself looking at my watch or waiting for something to happen.
The Revenant (which is a creature that comes back from the dead to haunt - like a zombie, vampire, etc.) was directed by the same guy who made last year's hit, "Birdman" and is the story of real-life trapper, trader, explorer Hugh Glass, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
Set in the Dakotas in the 1830s, DiCaprio, who has married to and had a son with a Pawnee Indian, is sent off with a group of soldiers and trappers to the upper Missouri river to bring back pelts. The 40-man trapping party is attacked by Indians and only a handful escape. As the stragglers are trying to avoid the Indians and make their way the nearest fort (200 miles away), Glass goes hunting for food and stumbles across a Grizzly bear and it's cubs. The bear attacks Glass and nearly mauls him to death before he manages to kill the bear. Glass is taken back to the camp where the group decides two men will stay behind with him, anticipating he will die, and bury him and the two will catch up with the group. The two men get spooked thinking Indians are nearby and leave Glass behind. Glass has many life-threatening injuries, including a broken leg and numerous gaping wounds, and he crawls, limps and drags his way back to the nearest fort while avoiding the Indians. This is a story of survival against incredible odds.
The movie is incredibly graphic and extremely intense and even though I classified this as a "guy flick," many of the scenes are difficult to watch. I found myself cringing several times throughout the movie. The movie is visually stunning as the scenery is breathtaking, only to be offset by the harshness of an inhospitable terrain and unrelenting weather that the men must face in the rugged wilderness. Although I wouldn't consider this a good "date" movie, it really is a well-made movie that is a testament to human endurance and the will to live. I easily give this one a 9.5 out of 10 Sooner Schooners.
The Revenant (which is a creature that comes back from the dead to haunt - like a zombie, vampire, etc.) was directed by the same guy who made last year's hit, "Birdman" and is the story of real-life trapper, trader, explorer Hugh Glass, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
Set in the Dakotas in the 1830s, DiCaprio, who has married to and had a son with a Pawnee Indian, is sent off with a group of soldiers and trappers to the upper Missouri river to bring back pelts. The 40-man trapping party is attacked by Indians and only a handful escape. As the stragglers are trying to avoid the Indians and make their way the nearest fort (200 miles away), Glass goes hunting for food and stumbles across a Grizzly bear and it's cubs. The bear attacks Glass and nearly mauls him to death before he manages to kill the bear. Glass is taken back to the camp where the group decides two men will stay behind with him, anticipating he will die, and bury him and the two will catch up with the group. The two men get spooked thinking Indians are nearby and leave Glass behind. Glass has many life-threatening injuries, including a broken leg and numerous gaping wounds, and he crawls, limps and drags his way back to the nearest fort while avoiding the Indians. This is a story of survival against incredible odds.
The movie is incredibly graphic and extremely intense and even though I classified this as a "guy flick," many of the scenes are difficult to watch. I found myself cringing several times throughout the movie. The movie is visually stunning as the scenery is breathtaking, only to be offset by the harshness of an inhospitable terrain and unrelenting weather that the men must face in the rugged wilderness. Although I wouldn't consider this a good "date" movie, it really is a well-made movie that is a testament to human endurance and the will to live. I easily give this one a 9.5 out of 10 Sooner Schooners.
