The Revenant Review

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I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I didn't quite realise Iñárritu's The Revenant was a full blown body horror gag-a-thon until I saw it the other day at an Odeon pre release screening. By the end of the film I felt physically and mentally exhausted, I'm still unsure if that's a good thing or not.

I managed to see The Revenant early through Odeon's Screen Unseen secret film screenings, much to my delight, I had originally guessed the film would be The Big Short. The film is Spanish Auteur Alejandro González Iñárritu's latest feature, who directed the magnificent Birdman last year, so my hopes were high that The Revenant would carry on the directors string of critical hits. In many areas, the film succeeds magnificently, and will surely do well come awards season, however there are a few issues that hold the film back from greatness.

The plot of The Revenant is simple, this is a revenge film set in the American Frontier of the early 1800's. Our leading man Hugh Glass (Leonardo Di Caprio) is mauled by a grizzly bear while on a fur trading expedition with a group of American explorers, leaving him on the brink of death. Talk of rewards and money leaves the group split, with some staying to look after him and the others heading off towards town, when Glass is betrayed by one of his men he must survive on his own through a brutal and cold landscape to get his revenge. The plot is very simple and well trodden, and therein lies one of the films main problems. Iñárritu has dedicated the majority of screen time to brutality, shock and physical endurance, which in itself wouldn't be a problem had the plot been something memorable. As it happens it's easy to forget exactly why this struggle is so important until the final section of the film. For two hours we see Glass walking, stumbling and crawling through the snow, eating raw fish, sleeping inside of a horse and committing brutal acts of violence against anyone that stands in his way. Something is missing, the emotional connection to what he is fighting for is lost in the never ending struggle to stay alive.

Aside from this, the film is stunning to look at, swirling long takes and natural lighting give the film an almost ethereal Malick quality at some points, while also being rooted in the gritty reality of the landscape Glass is fighting against. The film's many shocking body horror scenes are enhanced by cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki's gruelling close up shots, some of which are very difficult to watch without looking away.

The standout performances in The Revenant are Leonardo and Tom Hardy, both do an excellent job of saying a lot with their eyes and body language, without the need for much dialogue. These are performances of spit, snot and blood, of screaming and agony, and they do a damn fine job. I would hesitate to say that this is either of their best performances, and I don't think that this will give Leo his much deserved Oscar, but both are worthy of nomination. Similarly to Birdman, the soundtrack is drum heavy, but this time the drums are pummelling and mighty, the sounds of war, and make the few and far between action sequences all the more exciting. In terms of technical details then, The Revenant cannot be faulted, the film is clearly a well crafted piece of cinema directed by a supremely talented man.

While I enjoyed The Revenant for its visuals and performances, I wouldn't that I enjoyed the watching the long and gruelling struggle that Glass goes through quite as much. Impressive for sure, but not something that I would personally dedicate nearly two and a half hours to again any time soon.

7.5/10