Jan 20, 20162 min read

The Revenant review

★★★★★

Directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu

Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy,

Film review by Oscar, Young Blogger at FACT aged 15

“I’m not scared of death, I’ve already done it”

This is a line from the Oscar nominated and action packed film The Revenant directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu (also director of Birdman). The film is inspired by true events based on the life of Hugh Glass, a fur trapper (played magnificently by Leonardo DiCaprio) and his epic journey set in 1823 in the American West. Hugh Glass is left for dead by his party and seeks revenge. It is a terrifying journey and story, brought to life by outstanding filmmaking.

The story itself is blood filled, action packed and thought provoking. The acting is the main eye opener due to the true greatness from DiCaprio and supporting actors (Tom Hardy as Fitzgerald and Will Poulter as Jim Bridger as well as a cast of great Indians and fur trappers) with DiCaprio and Hardy both strong contenders for an Oscar award. The locations used for The Revenant's cinematography provide non-stop breathtaking backdrops; for example - the treacherous snowy mountains of Louisiana. The terrifying violent scenes are necessary for the retelling of the story but amaze with their true brilliance in making it so real for the audience (you may have to look away in one scene!). Iñárritu really wants you to feel the visceral effect of every scene and does this with great success.

There are numerous emotional scenes in the film - with a lot of hurt, anger and betrayal among the fur-trappers party making you think about the characters and their actions. As the film progresses you begin to understand the main character’s view of everything and you really begin to understand what type of person he is and empathise with his emotions.

The Revenant contains very strong language, violence and has copious amounts of blood, but this should not discourage audiences from seeing the movie. It is visually stunning, the beautifully shot scenic locations were filmed in many countries such as Canada and Australia. There is very little dialogue in many parts of the film but this has no impact on the enjoyment.

Overall this is a truly remarkable, epic film which is very likely to win more than one Oscar award - and deservedly so. Highly recommended to audiences who enjoy adventure, American history, true stories or lovers of epic films on the big screen.

I’m not scared of this film, I’ve already watched it!

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