Artistic Revenge

When I saw The Revenant in theaters I had mixed feelings about it, and I ultimately did not care for the movie.  However, upon seeing it again I have realized that I may have been too quick to judge it.  This happens often with film because, as the old adage says, all art is subjective.

The Revenant is the story of a man who seeks revenge after being mauled by a bear and left for dead.  This movie is a great example of a character being a guide for us as we bear witness to the extravagant world they inhabit.  The wilderness is awe-inspiring to look at, and it is emotional to watch Hugh Glass (Leonardo Dicaprio) journey through it.  The bear attack is quite a horrific scene to watch.  Also, the confrontation between Glass and John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy) at the climax of the film is something you have been waiting to see for an hour and a half, and the emotional impact is definitely there.  With all of this cinematic greatness, it is hard to believe there are problems with the film, but there are a couple.  Somebody named Powaqa is apparently kidnapped, and it is mentioned throughout the film, yet we never see this happen so we as the audience never really care about that character.  Also, I swear at one point Glass tells his son to leave with his team and then a second later he tells him to stay put.  Come on!  Make up your mind!!  All in all, however, this is yet another great character piece given to us by Alejandro Inarritu.

I was a fan of Leonardo Dicaprio long before it was considered "cool" to like him.  For the past fourteen years, he has been in the Oscar conversation for nearly every film he has been in.  In The Revenant, he plays Hugh Glass.  His performance is amazing in this movie because so much relies on his facial expressions and not what he says.  The emotions that he displays on his face -- anger, determination and desperation -- are incredible.  The scene where he watches his son get killed is so emotionally gripping that you can feel the pain in his eyes as he watches this happen.  It is a powerful and driving Oscar-winning performance that we are unlikely to see again....until Dicaprio's next film.

Tom Hardy plays John Fitzgerald.  Fitzgerald is always unsure of Glass's tracking skills.  You can also see that there is bit of jealousy as well because it feels like Fitzgerald thinks he should be heading up the expedition.  It is evident that he is trying to coerce the team into going against Glass.  Hardy is a beast in this film because you can always see the craziness in his eyes, and it feels like he is just about to bust open with anger and hatred.  It is not easy to be the antagonist opposite an actor like Dicaprio, but Hardy does it with a deadly dose of confidence and arrogance.

Last year's (and this year's) Oscar winner for Best Director, Alejandro G. Inarritu, is the director of The Revenant.  Inarritu is a great director because he understands that this is such an emotional journey for the character of Hugh Glass.  The way the camera moves around him makes you feel everything he is going through.  Also, the epic shots of the wilderness throughout the film, while beautiful to look at, also make you hope that Glass gets his revenge because you realize how much he has to go through to get that satisfaction.  Inarritu directs this kind of story differently than we have seen from films in the past which is why this movie is as great as it is.

After watching The Revenant for the second time, I have completely changed my opinion on the film.  The Revenant falls just short of being a masterpiece, and I personally will never forget seeing the movie in theaters that finally got Leonardo Dicaprio his Oscar.  This is a sweeping, revenge epic on the grandest of scales and it is definitely worth your time and money.

Birdman is Batman

This is probably going to be one of the more controversial blogs I write.  The great thing about being a film fan is getting into debates with people about movies.  Just because I love a movie does not mean anyone else does.  All art is subjective.  I thoroughly love the movie Birdman, but I do not necessarily think that it deserved all the accolades that other people thought it did. 

Birdman is the story of an actor’s struggle to branch off from doing superhero movies by doing theatre.  Whether Michael Keaton will admit this or not, this movie is basically a commentary on his career.  I am not saying this is a good or a bad thing.  What I am saying is that, for me personally, this particular aspect actually made me enjoy the movie even more.

Michael Keaton plays Riggan Thomson.  Essentially, Keaton is just playing a version of himself throughout the film.  Again, this is neither a good nor a bad thing.  However, the Academy Awards are not given to actors who play themselves.  If they were, then Robert Downey Jr. should win an Oscar every time he plays Tony Stark.  I am glad Keaton did not win Best Actor because he did not deserve it.  Personally, I do not even think he should have been nominated.  Do not misunderstand me, Keaton is great in the movie.  In fact, he has never been better.  He is just not Oscar great.  Maybe Jake Gyllenhall (Nightcrawler) or David Oyelowo (Selma) should have been nominated in his place. 

Alejandro G. Inarritu directed Birdman.  From a technical standpoint, this film is bloody brilliant.  The entire movie is all one shot (or at least meant to look that way) that follows Riggan in his struggle to be successful in the theatre.  The character relationships that he has along the way are what drive the story so brilliantly.  I became a fan of Inarritu overnight because of Birdman.

From a technical point of view, I personally feel that Birdman broke new ground.  This makes it one of the more interesting movies to win Best Picture.  It is one of those rare films that keeps your eyes glued to the screen no matter how many times you watch it.  I highly recommend checking this movie out.  It is like nothing you have ever seen before.