The Revenant is a long film that if you are not immediately engaged in, it will not hold your attention. It is demanding and nuanced and never spells out what it’s doing or where it’s going. Iñárritu and co-writer Mark L. Smith leave out a lot of overt exposition and trust the audience enough to let them piece everything together. This isn’t a film that one watches easily and it’s also one that demands multiple viewings. This film may prove to hold DiCaprio’s finest performance, which is saying quite a lot considering the great roles he’s played over the last fourteen years. The Revenant is tough, engaging and downright fascinating to watch.
Read moreThe Hateful Eight (2015) ****
The Hateful Eight is a testament to the fact that Quentin Tarantino has never made a bad film and that most of his films could rightfully be called masterpieces, this one included. He has a command of the art form that few people ever achieve and this film stands next to his other greats Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill, Inglorious Basterds and Django Unchained. The film may not be for all tastes given the high level of violence and gore along with the (time-period authentic) use of the N-word, but it is important not just because it was the first film to use UltraPanavision 70 in 49 years but because it is an exemplary film filled with interesting and amazing characters, magnificent camera work, masterful direction and writing and an end product that makes you respect some of these loathsome characters even if you may not be able to go all the way to liking them. Tarantino’s full forces are on display throughout the film, making it a glorious thing to behold.
Read more