Rating: 
Summary: Director Michael Mann's Masterpiece - Best Film of the '90s.
Review: "Last of the Mohicans" is this reviewer's choice as the best film of the last decade. Director Michael Mann, known for such films as "Thief", "Manhunter" (from Thomas Harris' first 'Hannibal Lecter' book, "Red Dragon"), "Heat", and "The Insider", has crafted a masterpiece with "Mohicans". Filled with lush cinematography, epic story-telling, realistic and brutal depictions of war, and old-fashioned romance, this film has something for every film lover. "Last of the Mohicans" captures the plight of people unwillingly caught up in England and France's desperate struggle for the North American continent during the so-called French/Indian Wars of the 1750s. And Michael Mann is no fuddy-duddy; his version of this story pours out with a fluidity and intensity that James Fennimore Cooper's book simply doesn't emit. Daniel Day-Lewis stars as Hawkeye, a white man raised since infancy in the frontier forests by his Mohican father, Chingachgook (played brilliantly by Russell Means); together with his half-brother, Uncas (Eric Schweig), they seek merely to survive, along with their fellow frontiersman and tribes of upper New York state and Canada. Forced by circumstance as unwilling guides to the supercilious English Major Heyward (Stephen Waddington) and the daughters of Colonel Munro, the estimable Cora (Madeleine Stowe) and timid Alice (Johdi May), the three find themselves trapped in besieged Ft. William Henry. The tragic events that would follow the fort's capitulation are justly infamous, and would forever stain the memory of the otherwise revered French General Montcalm. Mann's brilliance is that he tells the story of nearly all participants with equal grace and clarity. For example, the film's chief nemesis, Magua (ideliby played by Wes Studi), has been called by one reviewer "filmdom's most malevolent bad guy since Frankenstein's monster", but Mann is careful to illustrate why Magua hates as fiercely as he does. Maurice Roeves and Patrice Chereau are excellent as the equally doomed Colonel Munro and General Montcalm. Even the obnoxious Heyward redeems himself with an act of selfless courage that is stunning. Mann's battle scenes are spectacular - shot in real time without any of the distracting stop-action director tricks or camera swirls recently seen in "Gladiator" or "The Patriot". They are for this very reason far more heart-wrenchingly brutal and intense than most modern directors have the courage to present. (The only recent films which compare are "Private Ryan" and Mel Gibson's "Braveheart".) And precisely because Mann has showed us such violent struggle, it matters(!) when Hawkeye implores Cora to "Stay alive, no matter what occurs! I will find you!" Lastly, "Last of the Mohicans" features one of the best extended scenes ever committed to film: a nearly wordless, ten minute chase and death struggle across the region's beautiful but terrifying cliffs. Magua may be one malevolent guy, but Russell Mean's Chingachgook is equally capable in the art of war and survival. Director Michael Mann's achievement rests on his rare ability to tell a compelling story, an eye for brilliant cinematography (which nearly by itself illustrates why these people fought as hard as they did), fully realized characterization, a romantic soul, and an excellent cast. Truly, Michael Mann's masterpiece!
Rating: 
Summary: good but could have been better
Review: My biggest complaint with this movie is that story was changed and not for the better. In the original novel, Cora(played by Madeline Stowe) was in love with Uncas(who is the last of the Mohican tribe) and Hawkeye was just some old guide, along for the ride. Also Cora's sister Alice is in love with Duncan, the English officer. In this movie there is a major turnaround. There is a love triangle-Duncan is in love with Cora who is in love with Hawkeye, who is young and attractive, and Alice has feelings for Uncas(and there is no character development for either one of them). I think perhaps the producers had a problem with an interracial angle although in this day and age you'd think Hollywood has gotten over it. I guess not. None the less, I liked the film-the story was still compelling enough, battle scenes were impressive and I loved the soundtrack(I own it, as a matter of fact).
Rating:
Summary: Good film, unneccesary love story
Review: I am a HUGE fan of this movie. I want to see more. Naturally, when the DVD comes out, you expect to see, even a little more than you saw at the theatre, just to give you a little taste of one more thought, one more moment w/ Nathaniel or whomever is your favorite character. I read the customer reviews that slammed this version and I thought 'Yeah, right". I ordered it anyway. They were right. If this is the director's version, thank god he didn't have final say over the theatrical release. It's amazing how small changes can ruin an entire movie. He turned this unbelievably magical, wonderous movie into an "eh, ok" film! He cut music cues. He lowered volume, he ended music cues short. For example: The love scene w/ Nathaniel and Cora was changed, but get this... the music was lowered in volume to allow us to hear them breathing. This enhances the scene? The music is undoubtedly one of the greatest things about this film. The extra 30 seconds added to certain scenes were obviously cut for a reason. SOOOOO not worth getting this version. Michael, Mann, stick to directing and let the editors do their jobs.
Rating:
Summary: A Masterpiece/Guaranteed to shed a tear!!!
Review: Definitely a GREAT movie, the Last of the Mohicans, brings to the screen the story of Hawkeye, an American raised among the Mohicans, as he finds himself in love with the daughter of a British military commander and in the midst of the Seven Years War (French and Indian War) in the year 1757.
The film combines romance, drama, action and adventure making it one of the best of its kind!
Moreover, the clash between England and France is as fascinating as the conflict between the Mohicans and the Huron, and the tension between the Colonials and the North American British authorities; all are presented very well in the film.
Needless to say, Daniel Day Lewis, Madeleine Stowe, Russell Means, Eric Schweig, and the rest of the cast have truly outdone themselves with their performances, which are outstanding to say the least!
The actors' great talent and chemistry clearly shows, thus providing an entertaining film that can be watched over and over again.
The setting, the plot, the dialogues, the MUSIC, and the costumes are all wonderful!
It is a movie definitely worth owning, yet alone watching, especially for those with a soft spot for History and Romance.
Rating:
Summary: Thanks to a Previous Reviewer
Review: I would like to thank James Luckard, one of the previous reviewers, for mentioning that the uncut, theatrical version of this film is available from amazon.co.uk.
This is one of a handful of films of which I cannot get enough. I was glad to buy the director's cut and get the extra scenes, but I was very disappointed that some of my favorite lines were removed, and could not figure out why Michael Mann would want to tinker with this masterpiece.
My VHS tape has been watched many times, and won't last forever, but thanks to Mr Luckard I no longer have to concern myself with that. We have multisystem VCR's and DVD players because we buy a lot of British and French material, so I have ordered another copy of this wonderful film, and will now have the best of both worlds.
Rating:
Summary: liked it better
Review: I've always loved this movie, despite its errors, and I actually like it more since it doesn't follow the book. I've always been a huge fan of 19th Century American writers and their works, but I really didn't enjoy the book "Last of the Mohicans". I had seen some of the making-of documentaries about this movie and saw some scenes that didn't make it into the movie, so when they were re-edited in I certainly was thrilled with that. I also appreciated the removal of the dialogue that was clearly 20th Century and wouldn't have fit in back then. I'm not saying that this film is history (or even the book, for that matter), but as a serious student of that time period, my stomach turned more at some of the discourses between the characters than the historical errors.
All in all I liked the re-cut version better than the original, and they are both better than the book, but I suppose any number of items are up for personal subjectivity.
Rating: 
Summary: I should have read the Amazon reviews before I got this
Review: I don't mind expansion nearly as much as I mind all the deletions from this version. I love this film, but the DVD expanded edition is awful. What is with these directors? It's like George Lucas saying Star Wars films are his and he can do what he likes with them. I'm sorry, but these films become part of our lives. Mess with them if you must, but at least give us the choice. I've been replacing my vhs with DVD, but back to the vhs version for me.
Rating: 
Summary: I thought I was going a little nuts ...
Review: I thought I was going a little nuts when I watched my new DVD director's expanded edition of Last of the Mohicans. Much of the emotional impact of the film was, well, gone! It got so bad that I was compelled to dig out my old VHS version, that I hadn't seen for years, and watch the two alternately, one scene after another. The primary culprit was a muted soundtrack. Last of the Mohicans was the first film that illustrated to me was a powerful soundtrack could add to a film, and the soundtrack to Last of the Mohicans is one of the best ever. The decision to turn down the volume of the soundtrack and even eliminate a beautiful, haunting melody near the end of the movie is astounding, borderline criminal. None of the added scenes actually add anything to the film and they disrupt the pacing. I see that there are others who are as annoyed/outraged as I am. Add my name to the list of people who hope to see the theatrical version in DVD format some day. The directors cut is total crap and unfortunately my VHS version is showing it's age. The original cut is one of my favorite films but I truly despise this DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Don't Look for Cooper's Novel Here
Review: Mann has taken some of the characters and incidents from Cooper's novel and woven an entirely new tale from the material. The film is more closely related to today's popular romance paperbacks rather than Cooper's adventure novel. The film is about one young woman's discovery of true love; this is the stuff of romance paperbacks - not adventure novels of the early 19th century. This film is not an adaptation of Cooper's novel but something entirely different.
It is important to note here that Cooper did not create a love life for Hawkeye in any of the five novels he wrote about the frontiersman. The Hawkeye-Cora Munro love story of the film is Mann's fabrication.
The performers, the music, the details of costuming are wonderful - but the film is a far cry from Cooper's novel and historical accuracy. Nonetheless, it's a fun film and recommended for viewing. Just don't take it too seriously. Read the book!
Historical background: 2,000+ persons left Fort William Henry for Fort Edward on the morning of August 10, 1757 when the British surrendered Fort William Henry to the French. The French typically paid their Indian allies with the plunder of the defeated but with the British surrender of the Fort, the Indians were deprived of their "pay." The massacre began when Indians began to seize the possesssions of the departing British soldiers and civilians. Those who resisted the plundering were murdered. It was estimated then (and believed so now) that 70-150 persons died in the mayhem. Colonel Munro survived and made his way to Fort Edward with 500 persons. Hundreds more straggled into Fort Edward over the following days. The French risked their lives to stop the massacre and accompanied the survivors to Fort Edward.
Rating:
Summary: An Outstanding Movie, Well Worth Having
Review: A lot of people die in this big adventure story. They die for love, or out revenge, or out of hate, or out of pigheadedness. But this retelling of the James Fennimore Cooper story is, in my view, a big success. Partly this is because it combines so effectively the sweep of frontier fighting with at least three love stories which are genuinely touching and one, very sad. Partly, it's because the actors all do wonderful jobs with their characters. And partly, it because the director, Michael Mann, is able to combine so many elements of adventure and romance, yet he keeps things moving. There were no over-long scenes. Each scene served a purpose. And some of the scenes were great set pieces.
It's an old story about Haweye (Daniel Day-Lewis), raised by the Mohican Chingachugook (Russell Means) as his son along with Uncas (Eric Schweig), his other son. It's before the American Revolution and the French and Indian Wars are in play. Hawkeye meets Cora Munro (Madeleine Stowe) and her sister, Alice (Jodhi May). A war-bent band of Mohawks led by Magua (Wes Studi) is determined to kill the English, and they have no love for the Mohicans. As the story plays out Hawkeye and Cora Munro fall in love. It's also plain that Uncas cares deeply for Alice, who is far too fragile for the frontier.
The adventure set pieces are so well done it's to Mann's credit that they don't stop the action. Among them are the march from a doomed fort with the Mohawks waiting to attack, and then the attack; the capture by the Mohawks of Cora, Alice and Major Heyward, Hawkeye's appearance and the judgement of the Mohawk chief; the canoe chase and the search for shelter behind a waterfall; the pursuit by Hawkeye, Cingachugook and Uncas up the mountain trail to catch Uncas and his band who have captured Cora and Alice.
And the dramatic pieces are just as powerful: Hawkeye and Cora, from two different worlds, gradually realizing they have feelings for each other; the sacrifice of Major Heyward and Hawkeye's action; Uncas' valiant, hopeless attempt to save Alice; Magua's hate turning to something that might be a puzzled feeling of...what?...toward Alice and then her decision; and the battle between Chingachugook and Magua.
Day-Lewis is great in his part, and Stowe matches him. Equally effective is Wes Studi as Magua. He has such a lean, chiseled face and carries himself with such resentfulness and hate. In a quieter role but just as effective is Russell Means. The end of the movie is this powerful combination of happiness for Hawkeye and Cora Munro and such stoic sadness for Chingachugook.
As you might tell, I like this movie.
The DVD transfer is excellent
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