The Revenant

Hugh Glass: As long as you can still grab a breath, you fight. You breathe. Keep breathing.

In Alejandro G. Iñárritu's latest film, Leonardo DiCaprio plays a highly fictionalized version of frontiersman Hugh Glass as he seeks revenge for being left for dead after a bear attack. On a fur trading expedition, Glass is viciously mauled by a bear, leaving him with a broken leg and numerous flesh wounds. While recovering, Glass witnesses his half-Pawnee son's murder at the hands of Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy), one of the men left behind to care for him. Fitzgerald and Jim Bridger (Will Poulter) leave him for dead in a shallow grave and, after clawing his way out, he sets off on a harrowing journey that pits him against both the wilderness and hostile groups in order the exact vengeance for his son.

This film is intense to say the least and Iñárritu's portrayal of life in the American frontier is unflinching in its brutality. Early on, we see an attack by a Arikara war band that manages to convey both the perilous nature of fur trading and the terrifying reality of guerrilla warfare at the time. The bear attack is disconcertingly realistic and the survival techniques Glass relies on are horrifyingly gruesome. Through it all DiCaprio's performance brings to life both Glass's dire predicament and the true loss he experiences in his family's death. We are frequently reminded of the strength of trees in the face of the wind and the imagery of the forest throughout the film are beautiful reminders of that. The lingering shots and natural lighting help reinforce the overall style and is truly one of the highlights of the film.

But in general, the film is overly sentimental to me. It's easy to sympathize with a man with a murdered wife and son and who appreciates the wisdom of the Pawnee. It's a lot harder the sympathize with the real life Glass, who sought revenge only for himself and the recovery of his rifle. As it is, we see a man settled in his wisdom who gains no new revelations through the experience. He is written as a man modern Americans' want their frontiersmen to be rather than how they really were which is probably closer to Fitzgerald and Bridger. The orchestral parts of the score are haunting but overdone and surprisingly European for the story. The flashbacks of his wife felt emotionally manipulative and could have been accomplished in a much more subtle manner. And all of this lead to the film feeling too long.

The Revenant is unremittingly depressing and gruesome and is not for the faint of heart, but is a wonderful representation of life on the American frontier. It shows the complex relationships amongst the diverse groups of settlers and Native Americans as well as the harsh conditions they faced in the wild. But the heavily revised depiction of Hugh Glass feels like it's pandering to the audience and its heavy-handed sentiment undercuts the strength of DiCaprio's performance. I would recommend this to those interested in the time period or in completing their Oscar scorecard.