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Summary: This edition of the movie is very dissapointing
Review: The director's cut very well may have added a few superflous scenes to add length, but it also removes parts of the movie. I liked the original movie a great deal, which is why I bought the disc. I particularly liked the ending, but the ending of the director's cut has a different soundtrack and was mixed and cut differently. Some shots seem to have literally stretched the original version to make it last longer. I am not talking about slow motion, I am talking about literally pausing the shot for a fraction of a second, going to the next shot, pausing it again, etc... Some of the dramatic lines in the movie were removed, to the point where the scene no longer makes sense. Some of the fight sequence at the end also appeared to have been edited out. Without viewing one edition at the same time as the other, I can't be sure of how much is missing. Yet while watching the director's cut, I kept noticing missing pieces and awkward additions. This edition is considerably less than the original, and don't expect it to be just as good.
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Summary: DVD transfer is fatally flawed
Review: Bizarre shaking and lagging of image components ruins shot after shot. A sampling of affected scenes: *Hawkeye visits cabin. Dinner table briefly leaps upward in the frame, while the rest of the room remains stationary. *Cora Munro reaches down to grab weapon from dead soldier's hand. Soldier's forearm vibrates in and out of its sleeve before she touches it, resembling clever Halloween prank. *Dialog scenes in the fort have mouths that move while the rest of the face remains impossibly immobile, an effect previously seen only in claymation films. *In the jail, a backlit window moves vertically in shot, closely followed by the wall in which it is mounted. Truly astonishing effect. I wanted to cry. I paid $26.00 for this beloved movie, and the DVD only hints at the film's glory. I cannot in good conscience even screen this film for friends and family without embarrassment and apology. Yes, the cinematography is breathtakingly beautiful, but I lost count of these bizarre artifacts, so tremendously numerous and so distracting. They absolutely ruined what would otherwise have been a stunning film. I was actually convinced my DVD player had broken till I swapped in another title and confirmed the problem was the media, not the player. I could not feel more ripped off. Dvdreview.com describes it this way (how I wish I'd seen this before I'd bought my copy): "...director Michael Mann ... adds about 15 new scenes ... the transfer immediately caught my attention however. In a number of scenes, it seems as if heavy restoration was required to achieve the image quality we ultimately see on the screen. As a result certain parts of the image appear to be 'swimming' and 'ghosting' where the computer has tried to restore missing picture information and where heavy noise reduction had been applied. I am not sure why a film from 1992 would require such dramatic restoration that would result in such noticeable artifacts, but the effect was very visible in a good number of scenes."
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Summary: My #1 favorite movie
Review: My favorite movie of all time. From the acting, to the scenery, and the awesome music, truly a great film. Buy it and tell your friends.
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Summary: Daniel Day Lewis in one of his best movies....
Review: This is a great film although the story barely resembles the book (thank God because Mark Twain trashed the book.) The film was shot in the Great Smokey Mountains of North Carolina in the Pisgah National Forest near Asheville, one of the few last stands of virgin woods on the East Coast. The setting of the story is upstate New York in the 1700's. In those days, European settlers migrated to America and moved into the interior wilderness where they settled, built homes and farms, and fell in love with each other. In some cases, they fell in love with native American Indians. The people of Appalachia are descended from them (Cherokee, Scots-Irish, Welsh, English, Dutch and German). The story centers on the lives of two women, the Munro sisters (Scottish descent)and the men in their immediate circle. They are connected to British officers including Duncan who wishes to marry Cora Munro. Later in the film, they become involved with a rugged trio of Americans -- an Indian father and his two sons. One son (Hawkeye, played by DDL)was an orphan white boy adopted by his father Chingichgook. At the time of the story, the French and English are at war--again! This time the two European powers are fighting over the future of "their colonies" in North America. The local folk mostly want to be left alone, but still retain some loyalty to the British and when asked to fight the French they enlist. Not Hawkeye and his family. These men get caught up in the war only when they rescue the two Munro sisters and Duncan from some really bad Indians led by Wes Studi ("Dances With Wolves"). The differences between the "Director's cut" DVD and the lazer and VCR: The "Director's cut" reinstates film edited to make the theatrical release fit the movie house agenda of 1.5 hours (turnover)-- so, it's a longer film. The new material includes more footage showing the British soldier Duncan fighting heroically at the fort the French eventually capture, and a much longer spiel at the end of the film by Chingichgook as he prays over his dead son. If you liked the film mainly for the musical score, you may be disappointed by the DVD because the score has been reshaped. The Director says he thought it was too "cloying" so he removed it. I am speaking specifically of the vocalization ("I Will Find You") that plays when Hawkeye follows Cora and tries to rescue her. Otherwise, it's a stunning film, shot in a stunning location and although the DVD can't match the picture on the big screen it plays well on the small screen.
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Summary: A classic version of James Fenmore Coopers novel
Review: I am a History Major specializing in Medieval Europe (400-1500AD) and Colonial North America (1585-1789) and so I first watched this movie with the critical eye of spotting any inaccuracies and misleading historical truth, however 5 minutes into the movie I was so involved in the plot and the story of the movie I could care less about how the accuracy level was. This is a breathtaking movie from beginning to end. Daniel Day-Lewis portrays the legendary Hawkeye so well, that I think James Fenmore Cooper would give his approval. Lewis gives Hawkeye courage and strength, yet sensitivity when it matters most. Russel Means does a fantastic part as Chingachgook, and Wes Means as the evil Magua, yet in this story as in the book, you find out why Magua has turned vicious and cruel. It is about time that the background of Magua be told, and not just portrayed as being evil for no reason. Madeleine Stowe is beautiful in this movie and I don't blame Hawkeye for falling in love with her so quickly, I would to fall in love with a woman like that. The location is fantastic and beautiful, the music is haunting and well placed, the dress and uniforms of the times are right on target and the battle scenes are accurate as well. Both the French and British viewpoints are well received as noble but dangerous enemies, each trying to get more power in North America. This is a movie that can be shown in a High School or University U.S. History class and can be a great starting point to analyze and talk about early Colonial History Of America. I also highly recommend this to anyone who wants to watch a first rate movie!
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Summary: A breathtakingly beautiful film
Review: This film was a real string to Daniel Day-Lewis' bow (no pun intended); having proved he could play every type of English character (from a toff in the Merchant-Ivory Forster-adaptation 'Room With A View' to a modern-day London punk in 'My Beautiful Launderette') he passes himself off admirably here as an American settler gone native: Hawkeye, the last of the Mohicans. Based on James Fenimore Cooper's comparatively dry and slow-moving novel of the same name, Michael Mann's film is a rousing, beautiful and romantic adaptation, with a buff Day-Lewis charming the winsome Madeleine Stowe and skilfully slaughtering his enemies in brutal hand-to-hand combat. This is one of the few Hollywood movies to incorporate history, romance and action so effectively. A very, very good DVD.
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Summary: Is It Just Me, Or Is Hawkeye A Perfect Counterculture Hero?
Review: Of course, the movie is great, the cinematography is simply marvelous, and I could watch Madeline Stowe all day long......But that isn't the reason I wanted to jump into reviewing this movie. I wrote to see if anyone besides me sees Hawkeye as the first movie hero portrayed as a sixties-type counterculture freak. The figure of Hawkeye is drawn here as a kind of counter-cultural anti-hero. Here he is, a long-haired non-conformist, a white man scorning the ways of colonial life, choosing instead to live the Indian way among kindred spirits (the Mohicans). He lives in harmony with nature, owning only what he can carry with him. His values are not those of the white man, not those of the colonial farmer, and certainly not those of the despised "Yankee trader", who greedily attempts to exploit the local environment in order to maximize whatever material wealth he can glean from it . For Hawkeye and the rest of the Indians, such values make no sense. What, for example, is the purpose in owning more things than one can use? Instead, he follows a more aesthetic philosophy, employing a minimalist value system allowing him to live off the the land without exploiting it beyond its limits. Gotta set his soul free? Meanwhile, he heaps scorn on the ways of the crazy white man, whose life and values seem to make no sense. Unlike Cora, Hawkeye moves effortlessly through the wooded landscape, viewing reality through the very practical lens of experience and Indian wisdom. He doesn't attempt to interpret the world through some inappropriate value system such as English culture. Instead, he uses local values, customs, and folkways to great personal advantage by employing them in an active attempt to interact as meaningfully as possible with the evolving circumstances, whether it be with Cora, the Camerons, the Hurons, or the military. Thus, Hawkeye as portrayed in this movie represents a perfect model, whether intended as such or not, of the consummate counter-cultural man. His views are those of the 1960s freaks; a no-bull..., no-complications, lets-live-for-today concentration on living in the present moment. he is neither racked by torment, nor by regret over misdeeds in the past, nor is he filled with dread or self-doubt about the future. He lives with no apparent illusions, with no apparent aspirations, no personal ambitions or career plans. He seems in touch with his feelings (his "inner child?"), and he shows a range of emotions all the way from gentleness toward loved ones and a reverence for all living things to the other side- he's willing to deal aggressively with any perceived threats emanating from outside sources. This new movie Hawkeye is a marvel to behold; an idealized man who never makes a false step. He recognizes his dependence and obligations to others, such as his adopted Mohican father Chingachook and his blood-brother Uncas. He acts immediately on his attraction to Cora as their romance develops. His actions are all consistent with his stated values; i.e. they serve to move him aggressively but purposefully through whatever environment he finds himself in. He understands that his values are not always the same as the values of those of others with whom he must interact, yet he makes no effort to attempt to change their attitudes or ideas, nor does he interfere with these individuals in pursuit of their goals unless their acts somehow threaten or impede him. When it's appropriate, he's quite able to explain his motives, attitudes, beliefs, and values, as he does to the English major who mistakenly believes him to be an Indian scout. So dear reader, what do you think. have I been sitting out in the sun listening to old CSN&Y records too long, or do you think Michael Mann slipped us a fast one? Far out!
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Summary: Masterpiece of adventure
Review: Frankly, I cannot think of anything that could possilby improve this movie. The acting by Daniel Day-Lewis is sincere and moving and brings the character of Hawkeye to life. Wes Studi as Magua is truly outstanding. How he did not garner best supporting actor is beyond me. He is a study in hatred and revenge and his scenes are riveting. Kudos also for Madeline Stowe and the French General whose name escapes me. Chingachgook, played by Russel Means is flawless. The story is timeles and the setting which is supposed to be upstate New York is actually North Carolina is stunning and beautifully filmed. What I found most outstanding is in the scenes where the action is building or in full fledged engagement the music hauntingly entraps you and surrounds the scene with absolute rapture. Last of the Mohicans is a first class adventure and will, to my mind, be a timeless masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: The Last of the Mohicans
Review: This movie is the best drama ever made. It makes such a huge difference on DVD. It has some of the most beautiful cinematography i have ever seen, and the action scenes are riveting. Daniel Day Lewis and Madiline Stowe give the best performances of their careers.
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Summary: Savage romance
Review: The Last of the Mohicans is an epic. The cinematography alone almost guarantees it. This is the perfect representation of James Cooper's novel. I am not a historian but the realism of the period, to me, was totally convincing.
This is my favorite Daniel Day-Lewis film. The man is without doubt a consummate actor and this film just serves to prove it. His portrayal of Hawkeye, shows the character's fierce independence but also his unswerving loyalty to his family and to his ideals. Day-Lewis's acting seems to say, "This is what a true man is".
The whole cast was just superb. While Russell Means, (Chingachgook), didn't get much screen time he was startlingly intense. And athough Uncas (Eric Schweig), the only living son of Chingachgook, was a fairly quite fellow, the women in the audience clearly appreciated his presence. Lastly Jodhi May played Alice Munro, an easily overlooked character. But she did it very well, giving Alice a naivete and fragility that I haven't seen since the good old days of hollywood.
Madeleine Stowe is also very good in this film. She manages to let Cora Munro display strength of purpose without breaking out of the period. I have seen so many films which ignore the fact that women's public behaviour and possibly their personalities have changed dramatically in the last century. Actors and scripts portraying women with modern attitudes and behaviours in historic films are not true to history.
I hardly feel like I need to give a synopsis of this movie as the story is so well known. Instead I will highlight a few impressive scenes to watch out for. The elk hunt at the start is very well filmed. Just about all of the battles and skirmishes are superb in their attention to detail. Concentrate on the scene under the water fall, for it is powerful. And the film's final fight, between Chingachgook and Magua, is brilliant in its brutality.
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