Last Samurai, The (BD)

Tom Cruise is a famous actor worldwide. Most of you have seen his work in various films, such as A Few Good Men or Jerry Maguire. However, Tom is back in a new movie, which takes the audience back into an era of the past - one that surrounds us in the days of the Civil War. Tom Cruise portrays a man named Nathan Algren, who is a hero during the Civil War, but is disillusioned of the terrible killings he had to perform under the leadership of Colonel Bagloney against the American Indians. He is hired, by the Japanese Emperor, to take down another rebellion by leading a army of Japanese peasants that never saw a gun in their life. Even though he trains them for a time, the rebels attack and Algren is ordered to track them down and defeat the adversary, despite the fact that more training is needed. Fighting somewhere in the forests of Japan, his army is easily defeated and the rebels capture him and take him back to their village. Becoming a captive and not having a chance to escape, due to the fact that winter's coming, Algren spends his time with these people, already inspired and intrigued. He comes to learn that these people are "Samurai", who serve the Emperor and follow life through a different path and a set of principles that keep their life in balance, using such values as loyalty, duty, and compassion, just to name a few. Only one problem remains - Japan is facing a new modernized world and is seeking to keep up with the times by throwing away the traditions of old in favor of a more-friendly government. The rebellion, lead by a samurai named Katsumoto (portrayed by Ken Watanbe), despies that idea and fight back in order to keep their sacred ways alive. Gaining his sense of honor and redemption back, Algren joins the Samurai and aids them in a fierce battle that decides Japan's history for the rest of time. The movie does have its dose of action scenes and story moments, but what really make this movie unique are its philosophical moments. The Samurai, as you know, are people that follow the way of the Bushido, the traditional code of the Japanese samurai, stressing honor, self-discipline, bravery, and simple living. It's the type of values that most people wish to live by, but the Samurai go far beyond that. If they are defeated in battle, then it means that they have dishonored themselves and their clan, thus will kill them for disgracing their families and those close to him or her. It's a tough life, to be sure, but it's the principles of their life that stands out. Tom Cruise said it best about the Samurai: "They are an intriguing people. From the moment they wake, they devote themselves to the perfection of whatever they pursue. I have never seen such strong discipline." In order for the movie to display any realism, the movie was shot around various locations in Japan, from a temple located in Kyoto to a small Japanese town called Himeji. Not only the locations needed to be authentic, but also so did everything else, as this movie took place in two different worlds. Everything had to blend in for the movie a sense of honesty into the whole project. Though there is some historical inconsistencies in the plot, since this is based on a certain era in the past, those can be looked past. The action is wild, but again, had to be realistic. So realistic, in fact, that there was some close calls on the set. Tom Cruise could have died, since an actor's sword nearly beheaded him. That's just one example, but just by checking out the loads of extras on the DVDs, the entire team was committed to the project, making sure that everything went smooth and made the picture look good as a whole. The fighting sequences also add some depth and insight as to how the Japanese and Americans deal with combat, especially in the climatic battle that had both samurai and soldier confronting each other in the end. Overall, The Last Samurai is worth checking out, especially if you are a student of Japanese history or if you're into everything or anything Japanese. It's also some of Tom Cruise's best work by far. Anyone that's a huge fan of Cruise ought to pick up The Last Samurai.

One of the best DVDs I own. An excellent movie showing the reality of Japan at that time in their history. Tom Cruise performed admirably, one of his best films.

There is a saying that, "if you don't see the Divine both in the profane as in the profound, then you are not seeing the whole picture." Although war certainly has it's horrors, the movie highlighted its beauty. At first I was debating between this movie and 47 Ronin (with Keanu Reeves), both about the Samurai. They were the same price (to rent), but Ronin's running time was 1 hour 58 minutes, whereas The Last Samurai's is 2 hours 34 minutes. Watching the trailer, though, convinced me to take a chance on The Last Samurai. SO GLAD I DID! Perhaps having been in the Marines, in an Artillery Unit (0811), served to pull me into the plot, and identify with it. I remember one time when we were on a mission and the Howitzer next to us flipped on its side because we were on uneven terrain. Both the gun crew to this Howitzer's right and left rushed over to help our fellow brothers. We then ran back to our own gun. The Officer commanding the mission paid us a visit. I was certain, to chew us out for leaving our guns. He actually commended us. Told us that that is exactly what makes us the best branch in the military. That we are men of honor. If any of you are on the fence in deciding whether to watch this movie because of its long running time, please don't allow that to be a factor. This movie is so well made that you won't even feel the duration. It will pull your heartstrings sharply and allow you to see the beauty of being human. No other living creature on our planet gives precedence to personality qualities like Honor, respect for tradition, for our fellow brothers and sisters, etc. I really can't say enough about this movie! The cinematography was breathtaking! The music played during the epic battle scene was eerily poetic and exquisite. How certain people could survive after such huge odds, especially after being at the very front of the approaching line, will beg for your suspension of disbelief. You will have to remind yourself that this is, after all, a movie. Yet, it was so beautifully made and executed that you will fall in love with its creative value. With the message it whispers into your soul. The message, at least for me, was that within us is the True Samurai, which is the Self. It is this that we must honor. And that with our very sharp sword of awareness, we must slay everything that stands in our way of achieving our purpose in this life. That if we must die in the process of such mission, that we must do so with honor. That we must never give up, no matter what the odds appear to be. That like the Samurai, we must be disciplined, well centered, peaceful, honorable, respectful, protective of those we cherish... This is truly one of the best and most beautiful movies that I have ever seen. I know that I will end up watching it again and again whenever I am in need of a boost, or a reminder of what is most important in life. When I need to sharpen my sword and slide it back into its sheath.

Love the movie. Great story and acting.

Good

MOVIE: This film was one of the surprises for me of 2003. I saw Tom Cruise playing in this Samurai genre film that looked very bad. I was the victim of bad marketing. The trailer does not show what the movie is truly about. This film is a wonderful exploration of interaction among societies and how the world as a diverse planet can learn from one another. The film was excellent because it really showed the audience about Samurai life and built on the characters and their ideologies. We learn through watching how a Samurai grows up trained to obey the emperor and lives by honor. Through the intense character development comes the importance of the ending. Cruise also gave a good performance but as you've all heard, Ken Watanabe steals the show. Hans Zimmer's score also brought the movie to life as does all of his incredible scores for their movies. The Last Samurai does however becomes the victim of Hollywood cinema. The film is not all historically accurate, but then again the purpose of the film isn't really to be a documentary, but more of a character exploration. This is a movie that is a little gem, not a masterpiece, but not something you want to throw away. VIDEO: The only problem with this transfer is a little grain here and there, but overall a nice effort by Warner. There is also the flaw of some blurring during fast paced scenes. AUDIO: The disc has a Dolby 5.1 track and is pretty clean but not as good as it should be. PACKAGING / EXTRAS: The disc comes in a standard two disc Amaray case (I love two disc sets from warner cause they can't put them in snapper cases). The extras include a 13 minute featurette about Tom Cruise and his experience making the film, Edward Zwick's directors journal a 26 minute featurette, a conversation with Zwick and Cruise, History vs. Hollywood a 22 minute special from the history channel, a production design featurette, a costume featurette, two deleted scenes, and footage from the premieres in Japan, and trailers for the film. Overall a nice heft sack of goodies but I wish they had a featurette dedicated to Hans Zimmer's score since it was very well done. Movie Score: (4 Stars / 5 Stars) DVD Score: (8 / 10)

Despite this being a very good movie. I'm not adding it to my favorite list. It's not one that I would watch over and over like some others on my favorite list.

If you haven’t seen this, you need to. Great actors and acting. Beautiful cinematography and scenery throughout the entire movie. Action, drama, some humor and just a terrific story.

トム・クルーズのストイック生活がここから始まる、制作陣の人生を変える程の作品。その様子をもう一枚のディスクで長々と見せてくれます。本編と合わせて、某駅伝大井⇔箱根片道の時間は覚悟しないといけない、濃密な内容。某ヒストリー〇ャンネルのドキュまるまる入っていたり…インタビューあり、現場風景あり。この映像特典だけ見ようと思っていたら、本編が見たくなって結局、観てしまた。

....His diversity of roles. 'The Last Samurai' is a movie that is by the numbers without any great surprises. It is not an epic nor is it a cheapskate historical film. However, it does have a cogent script, fantastic scenery, good photography and solid performances all round from its cast. Movies like this and 55 Days at Peking or The Sand Pebbles perhaps show why China has no trust of the West. They have long memories plus the physical remnants of when the West lorded over them & are determined not to let it happen again. This is an engaging movie that stands up well to repeated viewings.

The product arrived in great condition. I really enjoyed this film on DVD, but I wanted to upgrade to Blu-ray. For $20, it was well worth it.

The DVD: Delivery speed was ok, packaging was good. Only problem is: I received a Region Coded DVD, which I did not notice previously in the product description. This is region coded to Region 5. Now this should not be problem for DVD/Blue Ray players purchased in India, I understand. since most of them will be free of any Regional Codes. But my blue Ray player was purchased in the US, and hence this DVD won't play there. I tried on my laptops thinking to connect my laptops to the TV by HDMI cable. But my laptops too gave my warnings: I needed to change the region code. So, I played the movie by VLC media player on my laptop, which ignores any Region restrictions. The Movie: This is the hollywood version of the life of one of the most well known Japanese Samurai Heroes: Saigo Takamori, who is regarded as the last samurai of Japan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saig%C5%8D_Takamori In the Movie the character protagonist samurai Katsumoto played by Ken Watanabe is based on Takamori's life. A few gems that I like in the movie despite its Hollywood version of sense of Drama / melodrama: Katsumoto says in the movie: "One can spend a lifetime studying the cherry blossoms, and it will not be a wasted life" Another something like the following: Our destiny slowly uncovers itself in front of us like the spring time cherry blossom. Yet another, "We are all dying like those cherry blossoms, yet they are beautiful" I also loved the reference of the battle of Thermopylae when the 300 Greek Heroes fought the million soldiers of mighty Xerexes and brought him to his knees. Photography: Excellent and Panoramic

I love this steel-book for the colors mosaic, as well as the majestic movie within. Beautiful scenery of Japans' mountains and their valley's. As an actor, I love Tom Cruise movies, letting you know. This is one of his greatest achievements, as an actor he delves write into his movies main character, in my opinion.. Great acting all around in this movie with some well enacted battle scenes.