Review of The Last Samurai (2003) by Spangle — 26 Nov 2014

Now, is this the most original film ever? Absolutely not. If you hear that this is an epic action film about samurais with Tom Cruise, you could probably take a very solid guess about what will happen and how it will happen.

However, in spite of that, The Last Samurai never fails to entertain for many reasons. For one, director Edward Zwick is underappreciated massively by critics, as he honestly has a ton of talent, especially when it comes to directing films of this type that revolve around their battle sequences.

The battle sequences are brilliantly directed, filmed, and choreographed. In addition, the costume design is great and entirely authentic. The interactions between the Emperor, Cruise, and the Samurai, are also all entirely endearing and moving.

Tom Cruise and, especially, Ken Watanabe are also fantastic here and truly command the screen. They have great chemistry and really work well together when they share the screen. Finally, it never overdoes it with the action.

While this is an action-packed film, it is just as much as about the characters it portrays and the historical elements it tries to factor in as it is about the action. Overall, The Last Samurai is an entertaining love letter to the days where the Samurai reigned supreme in Japan and is a winner in my books.