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I'm no fan of Mr. Cruise, whose cinematic efforts tend to make my thespometer smoke and sputter in an attempt to register negative numbers. However, this film was utterly beautiful, both in the controlled fury and kinetic intensity of its battle scenes, and in the languid revelations of its characters. (I arrived at the same conclusion through a different path upon watching Kill Bill, Vol. I)
I have heard and read the Dances with Wolves analogies, and I am forced to report that they are either superficial or off the mark. Yes, both movies deal with the discomfort of morally conflicted American soldiers in service of manifest destiny. Yes, both concentrate on the teary-eyed displacement of indigenous people, set to the quasiethnic strains of obscure woodwind instruments. However, the main difference between the films is that The Last Samurai is a unique warrior story, while Dances with Wolves is just another pacifist's story featuring a warrior.
In the Last Samurai, the Cruise character's respect for his indigenous enemy derives from a warrior's realization of transcendent truths about honorable warrior traits. This respect births a genuine love for culture that engenders such traits, and an intense dislike for the individuals and forces in his own culture whose hubris has long since displaced honor. This recognition of honor in the "other" comports beautifully with the Cruise character's own personal integrity as a warrior. In the vein of Braveheart, or in certain respects, the Lord of the Rings series, the Last Samurai is a warrior story.
Dances with Wolves, on the other hand is, fundamentally, more a pacificist's plea. The Costner character realizes respect for the "other" backwards, only by having lost what he loved in his life. Nothing in the character's make-up suggests a unique ability to appreciate a particular trait of the indigenous culture. Without this parallel, the movie seems no different from a traditional "war sucks" movie, in which a man, ill-suited for war, gains personal peace and realization by disobeying orders and finding something in common with his enemy. This is a fundamentally different, and I would point out, less unique sort of story than that conveyed in The Last Samurai.
Also, I have always suspected Mr. Costner of unwholesome conduct in the company of monkeys and/or lesser apes. This has prevented me from enjoying his movies.
posted by 66.141.14...
, Tue, 23 Dec 2003 19:02:53
, Tue, 23 Dec 2003 14:09:50
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