Review of The Revenant (2015) by Dylan R — 07 Jun 2017

A year after the phenomenon that was "Birdman," Alejandro G. Inarritu still hunts for Oscar gold with his take on Michael Punke's compelling novel "The Revenant." I'll admit, I had giant expectations for this, but didn't know how it could possibly surpass the excellence that "Birdman" brought to recent filmmaking.

Comparing the two films, however, is like comparing apples and oranges. The two are both so different, but both so beautiful. "The Revenant" is gorgeous to look at, and is powerful to the heart.

The story follows a man, Hugh Glass (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) who is left to die after being mauled by a bear, and who tries to survive and seek his revenge on the opposing leader (Tom Hardy). DiCaprio is the man who does it all, delivering such a captivating performance.

Though the dialogue is scarce for half the film, his acting is always fully committed and has layers upon layers of feeling and emotion and backstory. It is an incredible thing to see on screen. Tom Hardy does an impeccable job as well, and plays one of the best on-screen villains I've seen.

Similar to Michael Fassbender in "12 Years a Slave," his character is a downright nasty human being, but the audience loves every second of his work on camera. Hardy and DiCaprio lead this cast, and deliver the heart of the film.

As for the beauty, Inarritu always makes everything eye appealing, but couldn't do it without Emmanuel Lubezki's cinematography. The man is a legend in the art, producing long, continuous shots of wildlife and nature.

At times, it is almost forgettable that you're watching a film, but instead suffering with Glass himself, and the gorgeous images send chills down the spine. All together, "The Revenant" is less of a film, and more of a piece of art, that is so beautifully crafted by Inarritu, and has some of the best acting of all year.

This is my favorite performance of Hardy's, and behind maybe "The Departed" or "Titanic," it is one of DiCaprio's best as well. It is gruesome, it's gory, it's chilling, and there are many parts of the film that will have you curling your lip up in disgust, but it all comes together to make one hell of a movie, and one hell of a ride from start to finish.