Normally I despise Tom Cruise. He isn't a great actor, he's not impressive as an action star, and I am sure he smells like cheese, but this can not be confirmed nor denied.
This being said, I went to see The Last Samauri only because I am a big fan of Japanese culture (greatest movie/book ever = Shogun, now on DVD) and because no other movies were starting around that time. I expected a good movie with a horrible lead actor, basically what I got from Interview with the Vampire, Mission Impossible, Top Gun, and countless others. What I got was a big surprise.
The basic plot was that Tom Cruise was a Captain in the US Army fighting against American Indians with COL Custer. It was kinda like every other movie where he was messed up from the things he had seen and done and turned into an alcoholic from it. Nothing new here, I settled into my seat for a boring movie at this point.
So the Japanese emperor hires him to train his army with "modern" warfare to defend the country from the Samauri that were rebelling against change. (It goes much more in depth, but that is the basic jist of it)
First fight with the Samauri, Tom Cruise explains that the army is not ready yet, but naturally no one listened and they got slaughtered by Samauri with swords. Go figure, right? It was a pretty stinkin cool fight scene though, and the Samauri cut the sissy boy up pretty good...too bad, I knew he wouldn't die though. But at least at this part the movie was getting more interesting.
So the leader of the Samauri spares his life because he wanted to get to know his new enemy, and over the course of the winter Tom Cruise learns about the Samauri, learns to use a Katana, learns Japanese (in a few months? yeah right), etc, etc...
So the whole thing comes to a head at the end for the final fight scene after coming back to "civilization" and he realizes that the Samauri were in the right and he takes their side.
Oh, as a side note, he had quit drinking by this point also.
So for the final fight scene you see Tom Cruise in the full armor of the Samauri and charging the hill where the new gattling guns and cannons are set up. Pretty stinkin cool, but predictable how this will end.
The story was rather predictable, but yet captivating. My friend's wife was crying at the end, I was all choked up, it was rather touching.
The effects were outstanding, right up there with Braveheart, The Patriot, and all the other epic movies of the recent years.
It is about 3 hours long, plus or minus a few minutes, but I didn't notice at all. It held my attention starting about 20 minutes into the movie and didn't lose it for about 2 days after I saw it.
I would definitely recommend anyone to see this flick. Very excellent violence, a mostly believable plot (mostly), and a very moving story behind the last of the Samauri warriors in Japan make this a must see for anyone who loves movies.
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