Review – The Revenant

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu follows up his 2014 Oscar winning masterpiece Birdman with one of the most brutal and chilling movie going experiences of 2015, The Revenant.  This is a no holds barred, white-knuckle, brilliant movie that plays out like action-horror movie set in the forest.

The film is set in the 1820’s, where frontiersman Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) goes on an epic journey to seek revenge on the group of men who left him for dead after a bear-mauling accident.

In a career that expands almost 20 years, Leonardo DiCaprio has given us a number of brilliant performances.  From his turn as a sweet, mentally handicapped teen in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? (1993) to the wild and crazy Wall Street broker Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), DiCaprio is never afraid to push himself and always gives us something brilliant.  His performance in The Revenant is one of his best.  This is a performance unlike anything the great actor has ever done.  Giving a mostly physical performance, DiCaprio brings a subtle intensity to Glass and convey’s the strength, determination, fear, and emotional and physical hell that he is going through perfectly.  Having been robbed of an Oscar a number of times, this could be the performance that finally gives DiCaprio the coveted gold statue.

Tom Hardy also stars in the film as fellow frontiersman John Fitzgerald and he is fantastic.  Following two other great performances this year in Mad Max: Fury Road and Legend, Hardy makes it three for three as Fitzgerald.  Fitzgerald walks around with a chip on his shoulder, always having his decisions and suggestions overturned by what Glass suggests.  Hardy combines brooding intensity and vulnerability effortlessly and achieves a performance as good as any in his career.

Inarritu continues to prove that he is one of the best directors working today.  This movie is jaw-dropping.  Shot in the woods of Alaska, Inarritu made sure we felt the brutality of these characters and of the film crew making the film.  You get cold watching the frigid landscapes and feel the pain of these characters.  Glass’s horrifying journey through the treacherous woods makes me never want to go camping again.  This is also the closest thing to an action film that we will get from Inarritu, as the plot, when broken down, is a perfect action plot and we get some bloody and exhilarating action and chase sequences.

It is very rare, in this CGI-heavy cinematic world that we live in, that a movie with practical effects made me say, “Wow!”.  There are moments in the film that blew my mind, such as the bear mauling sequence and the opening fight scene.  Shot by two time Oscar winner Emmanuel Lubezki, this is the best shot film of the year.  Continuing his trend from his last two films, Gravity (2013) and Birdman (2014), Lubezki lets us watch a number of scenes play out using expertly crafted long takes.  Look for Lubezki to win his third Oscar in row for this one.

It isn’t the easiest watch, but The Revenant is as good as movies get in 2015.  It’s a harsh, frigid, engulfing monumental achievement that features great performances, exciting action, and jaw-dropping visuals.

MY RATING – 4/4

Did you see The Revenant?  What did you think?  Comment below, or hit me up on Twitter @kevflix or on Facebook at my page, Kevflix.