The first few minutes of The Revenant are not unlike the opening scene from Saving Private Ryan, with a first-person perspective of the carnage that takes place when Arikara Indians attack a group of unsuspecting fur trappers. The hopeless and vengeful tone is set from the very beginning and only intensifies as things become more bleak in the snowy northern portion of the Louisiana Purchase.
Leonardo DiCaprio stars as legendary explorer Hugh Glass. Photo by Kimberley French.
Shortly after the survivors flee the Native Americans, Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) ventures into the wilderness alone only to be viciously mauled by an incredibly realistic bear protecting her cubs. With a maimed ankle and severe wounds covering his entire body, Glass runs a fever and is unable to move or speak. John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy) sees Glass as a hinderance and tries to convince the rest of the expedition that Glass should be put out of his misery. Fitzgerald’s motivations are fueled by more than just practicality and the desire to cash in on his pelts, however, as his disdain for Glass’ half-Indian son Hawk (Forrest Goodluck) is no secret.
Hawk and Jim Bridger (Will Poulter) volunteer to stay with Glass while the rest of the expedition continues on. Fitzgerald offers to stay as well, under the guise of protecting the two younger hunters. Fitzgerald’s ominous intentions are soon made clear and he eventually leaves Glass for dead. Driven solely by vengeance, Glass eventually musters the energy to crawl on, surviving brutally cold weather, near-fatal encounters with Indians and other setbacks that most healthy men would be unable to survive. His struggle is reminiscent of Cold Mountain and The Grey, motivated by his own teachings of survival to Hawk, as well as catching up to Fitzgerald.
Tom Hardy stars as the devious John Fitzgerald. Photo by Kimberley French.
With long portions of the film dedicated to Glass’ struggle to survive, DiCaprio’s talents are starkly on display. But it’s not just his performance that’s impressive here. Hardy’s portrayal of a bitter man who has the battle scars to back up his prejudices towards Native Americans creates the proper foil to Glass’ goodheartedness. The supporting cast, including Star Wars: The Force Awakens‘ Domhnall Gleeson as Captain Andrew Henry, does a convincing job of providing additional sympathy to Glass’ cause. And the intense cinematography of director/writer Alejandro G. Iñárritu recalls his earlier works, as well as those of fellow Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón (namely Children of Men). The fact that it’s based on real people and actual events (as well as Michael Punke’s novel of the same name) makes it all the more remarkable.
www.foxmovies.com/movies/the-revenant