Bob’s review published on Letterboxd:
4-out-of-4: I'm impressed.
The Revenant is an inspired-by-true-story adventure/drama.
The plot focuses on Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy, two guys who, in the 1820s, on the US frontier, work for a company of trappers. At the start of the film, their camp, managed by Domhnall Gleeson, is attacked by an Arikara war party who are looking for the Chief's daughter, Melaw Nakehk'o. Hardy and DiCaprio, with others, are forced to flee. Shortly after their flight, DiCaprio, a guide who is scouting ahead, is mauled by a bear. The survivors must continue on, but Hardy is paid to stay behind with DiCaprio, to bury him should be not make it -- likely, considering his grievous injuries. The Letterboxd description fills you in from there.
The story is exciting, engaging (less so the revenge motivation, and less so the Native mysticism, which never goes anywhere), and terrifying; every moment feels like it could be the last moment, where survival is not just a challenge, but a sport intended for only the most capable.
But the experience of the story is aided by the (admittedly gimmicky) nature of the film making -- immersive, video game-like with fewer cuts (not just within scenes, but between scenes -- giving it a day-in-the-life feel where we see "every" moment), and a camera at a lower level, that makes you feel like you're there. In the invasion scene, for example, arrows and bullets fly at the camera while it hurries along, trying to keep up with the other survivors amidst the chaos. As much as I enjoyed that, I liked how it felt in the slower scenes just as much -- looking up at trees or sky, watching an avalanche, a herd of buffalo, or a falling meteor. Plus, getting a sense of scale/distance, of seeing how a settlement looked. Visually, it's stunning. My only knock on how it looks is that the animal animations (i.e. the bear in particular) weren't the best. Not bad, but...
Surprised I went so long without having seen this. What a mistake that was. Glad it's finally been rectified. Great to watch and it flew by; I didn't realize it was as long as it was until after, when I looked at the time.
