The Revenant Review: Give Leo The Oscar Already

When I saw Birdman I instantly fell in love with director Alejandro González Iñárritu’s style and unique and fresh use of camera that made the film into an experience to behold. When I heard that he had a new movie coming out with Leonardo DiCaprio as it’s lead I was already sold, and I didn’t even know what it would be about. But now The Revenant is out and my blind faith in the film, while not fully rewarded by the end product, definitely wasn’t a misplaced faith.

The story for this film is actually kind of thin and more about the journey it puts its main characters mercilessly through. But to sum up this movie tells a story as old as time about an 1820’s frontiersman out for revenge for the death of his son but to get it he must traverse a brutal and unforgiving frozen land full of warring factions and dangerous beasts, none of which are on his side.

The first thing that stands out about this movie as a true achievement for the picture is just how phenomenal the acting is in this piece. The supporting roles of Domhnall Gleeson (Captain Andrew Henry), an inexperienced and upper class captain in this downtrodden and fierce world, and Will Poulter’s Bridger, a young frontiersman with strong and respectable morals he must fight to maintain at all times, bring great insight into the hostile world and lifestyle of a frontiersman in the 1820’s as you are given great portrayals of the different men from all upbringings as they are forced together in this harsh line of work.

But of course the stand out from this cast was Leonardo DiCaprio. Even as a man of little words in this movie, DiCaprio ceased to be the big Hollywood star and was completely immersed into the role, I was no longer seeing someone acting on screen but just purely the character. Every torturous hit, every second of pain felt, both emotionally and physically, was agonisingly portrayed by DiCaprio and you could really feel it. You are really taken on the journey with this character and if DicCaprio hadn’t proved he was owed an Oscar by this point, then there can be no argument against it now, his performance was simply phenomenal.

The fantastic acting and strong connection with the character greatly added to how intense this film was. Not being shy of the realistic gore that was seen and experienced time and time again on the frontier, when things began to heat up the intensity could be felt in the cinema. At many times I felt myself tense up, on the edge of my seat as I was captivated by the screen, unable to look away as another brutal encounter was running its bloody course.

This sense of intensity was greatly helped by the great use of sound in this film. Director Alejandro González Iñárritu knew when to leave the scene void of music, so all that can be heard is the splitting of bones, cruel icy winds of a storm, and the struggling breathes of DiCaprio as he strives on, with vicious purpose in his eyes. Without the distraction of music you are drawn into the scene and immersed into the experience even further, feeling like a silent passenger on this trying journey.

Alejandro González Iñárritu’s innovative and exciting use of camera and directing style can also be seen in droves here. His fluid movement of the camera gives the action scenes of the movie great momentum as you are whisked across the battlefield as if you are a frontiersman scrambling from cover to cover. His use of un-hesitant close ups also help grow the strong connection that is built between the characters, especially DiCaprio, and the audience, laying great ground work for the strong emotion felt when the characters inevitably endure the harsh strife brought on by this cold land. But also Alejandro González Iñárritu’s employment of long, uncut, shots brings great style to the film as well as absorbing you in the ongoing action that doesn’t seem to cease, giving the action scenes of the film a great sense both in scope and excitement. All this masterful directing culminates in an ending fight that is one of the most intense and emotionally charged ending confrontations I have seen.

In the down time of this film Alejandro González Iñárritu also knows how to get the most out of an already breath-taking scenery. His cinematography and use of the landscape was not only impressive but a marvel to see as Alejandro González Iñárritu gave us beautiful vista after vista whilst not losing how dangerous and unforgiving this place is. He also knows how to create great imagery that is not only stunning but adds great meaning to the events of the film as an idea that is seeded in the first act then culminates in a triumphant visual set piece that adds emotional depth to DiCaprio’s struggle and unrelenting drive.

While the film has it’s fair share if intense and brutal action set pieces, both man Vs man and man Vs nature, for every one of those scenes there seemed to be double the amount of slow paced and honestly boring moments too. While the story obviously lends itself to en-longed moments of nothing happening, really at all, as his travels across land are long and arduous; there’s only so many shots of DiCaprio looking painfully into the snow infested distance I can take. At many moments through the film I was left half way through a scene wondering why exactly I had to see this moment, as it added really nothing important to the plot and was really more of what we had seen before just in a slightly different variation with characters that we didn’t care about and at the end didn’t really amount to anything in the big picture. If this movie was vastly cut down from its two hour and a half runtime it would have become a much more streamlined and enjoyable experience, instead of the slog it sadly felt like for most of its time on screen.

Another problem I had with the film, and sadly I have with most films with this person in, was Tom Hardy’s voice. Once again, I couldn’t quite understand what he was saying some of the time. While his character was a serviceable villain, someone easy to hate and root for DiCaprio to fulfil his promise of revenge upon him; when it came to his antagonistic monologues I was left, ear pointed to screen, desperately concentrated on the wave of mutterings and indistinguishable sounds as I tried to piece together what he was saying. Maybe it was just the accent this film required or how my brain is wired but whenever he was on screen I found it difficult to follow what he was saying.

Overall this movie has its fair share of unapologetically brutal and absorbingly intense moments that left me tensed on the edge of my seat as I actively willed for both DiCaprio’s survival and victory. However it also has more than enough slow and boring sections that seem to drag and add nothing that substantial to the plot, but at least in those segments you are treated to the breathtaking cinematography of Alejandro González Iñárritu and DiCaprio’s phenomenal acting.

The Revenant = 7.5/10

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