Leonardo DiCaprio gets revenge in The Revenant

Also saw it today, here are my ramblings...

I'm glad I waited and saw it in the theater because I ****in loved this movie. Best way to describe this movie is a Terrence Malick film with actual plot. I just loved the way it was shot, Inarritu and Emmanuel Lubezki knows how to use the environment to their advantage and add towards the story. Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy were just great, both at the top of their game. Overall, it's one of those movies I get every now and then that I felt it was made just for me.

10/10

Yep, agree with all of this, especially the part in bold.
 
I really liked this movie, but it's not one of these years where I've felt, "yeah, THIS is the best of the year." I had that feeling with Birdman last year.
 
I saw it today, every frame is like a painting, the savage beauty of the unforgiving terrain immerses you in the fight for survival and hunt for revenge that Glass embarks on.

Hardy is very good as the ruthless and treacherous Fitzgerald, you can argue he's just trying to survive as well as things spiral, but his greed fuels an intense undercurrent of menace. Even though he has some meat to his dialogue the character works mostly due to Hardy's physical acting.

Leo on the other hand has very little to work with, and this is one of those occasions where being a big mega star we feel we "know" helps, as the film spends zero time exploring the man beyond the relentless vengeance seeking survivor. We know in the context of the story he's the one to root for but given there's nothing before the bear attack to make us care beyond base human nature, it's down to a connection with the actor and Leo's physical toil to invest us in Hugh Glass.

The film is a visual journey, a brutal travelog in a sense, it's told more through watching than listening, the dialogue is sparse and I can see why some feel it's overlong and self indulgent, but I felt the pacing was attempting to convey the degree of the struggle Glass undertakes.

There's an attempt to art things up a bit with the visions Glass has during his healing, and the always stoic Native American trimmings, but in truth this is a minimalist survival and revenge tale, nothing more, and that's fine by me, I don't need the other aspect to try and make me tag it as highbrow.

One thing I really loved was the long takes during the action sequences, they really took you into the carnage which was visceral and brutal but still cinematic and dynamic, marrying these elements is difficult but Iñárritu achieves it in style.

I wouldn't say it's a great film, but a very good one with some great moments, and it's 2015's most visually stunning movie. Like Pinky I don't think it's a lock for best picture but I think it has a strong shot at that award and the directing Oscar, I don't think this role will get Leo his Oscar though.

8.5/10
 
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Cool new avatar Hunter, from one of my favorite moments in the film.
 
I will say that moment was great.

Though... why didn't they take more people to hunt Fitzgerald instead of just the two of them?
 
I will say that moment was great.

Though... why didn't they take more people to hunt Fitzgerald instead of just the two of them?

A question I've seen a lot of people posing online, especially considering Captain Henry brought along the whole damn expedition looking for what was possibly maybe Hawk based on some French guy finding a canteen in the woods.
 
I give this a solid 'B'.
The look of the film was dazzling. Big Hi-Fi to the cinematopher.

I find the real Hugh Glass story more compelling.
 
Finally saw it. Great movie! Leo killed it.

Leo, Alejandro and Chivo deserve the Oscar, no question about it.
 
Cool new avatar Hunter, from one of my favorite moments in the film.

Yeah, the concept and execution of the scene right up to and including the money shot in my avvy is just fantastic. I also loved the part directly after where Leo just throws himself down the hill in chase, using the little axe to try to slow his descent, the camera just stuck with the shot to capture it, the lack of edits throughout was one of the great aspects of the film IMO.
 
Yeah, the concept and execution of the scene right up to and including the money shot in my avvy is just fantastic. I also loved the part directly after where Leo just throws himself down the hill in chase, using the little axe to try to slow his descent, the camera just stuck with the shot to capture it, the lack of edits throughout was one of the great aspects of the film IMO.


I like them hunting each other in the woods before the fall down the hill.
 
I give this a solid 'B'.
The look of the film was dazzling. Big Hi-Fi to the cinematopher.

I find the real Hugh Glass story more compelling.
I agree, it definitely doesn't deserve all these nominations. All the technical stuff? Yes. Best Direction? Maybe. Not 12 nods though.
 
Just saw it, really good movie, great performances from Leo and Hardy with great support from Gleeson and Poulter. Great visuals, some stunning cinematography with some superb moments throughout. Could have done with losing a little fat in the middle but overall I loved it.

8.5/10
 
Saw it loved it. Leo and the rest of cast did great. The visuals were stunning. It was cool too see a revenge movie done on such an epic scale. Overall amazing.
 
FOX 45 minute documentary about the making of the film:

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Finally got to see this yesterday.

I've been extremely excited for this movie ever since I saw the first trailer. The cinematography on the battle scenes simply seemed liked something I had never seen before.

In that aspect of the film, this movie fully delivered.

The spans in between I was less enamored with.

There are some great performances in this film, most notably Tom Hardy. I've liked Hardy in many films but I felt he was simply next level in this. He really got across everything you need to know about his character.

I was much less impressed by DiCaprio. Glass is a different kind of role, certainly, with less of a speaking part and DiCaprio definitely committed to the physicality of it all. That said I never really found myself really caring for him. I will give DiCaprio credit that he avoided the problem his roles sometimes have of a feeling that he was simply playing dress up.

I wasn't much for the establishment of his relationship with his son primarily through dreamy flashbacks. I think lack of investment in their relationship as well as the fact that [BLACKOUT]his son was already dead rather than captured or something [/BLACKOUT] really set back my investment in the story

Sidenote, doesn't the first trailer imply that [BLACKOUT]his son is captured or otherwise out of reach. "Not until I see my son." [/BLACKOUT]

This film is a technical marvel but overall left me a bit cold. A big part of that is that it builds to some very, very well trodden thematic points. [BLACKOUT]Revenge won't bring your son back, ect. [/BLACKOUT]

Despite the journey and the spectacle it all felt a little slight in the end.

8/10

Also, of Innaritu's films I've only seen this and Birdman. Is the falling comet a motif he repeats in all of his films? What is he going for with all that?
 
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By the way, RedLetterMedia put out a "Half in the Bag" review.

Beyond their jokes, their opinion on the film pretty closely mirrors how I feel about it.
 
Finally saw the movie... pretty stunning stuff all around. The real star of this movie is Lubezki, but DiCaprio and Hardy certainly deserve all the love they are getting.

I don't know what the general consensus is, but it didn't top Birdman for me.
 
I agree with redhawk, this is definitely a technical marvel but story elements did leave me cold.

I think best cinematography and maybe even best acting award nominations are warranted for the film. Maybe even best direction. But yeah, the story didn't match the film's grandiose presentation.
 
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