Written by Michael Mann and Christopher Crowe, adapted from the 1936 Philip Dunne screenplay by John L. Balderston, Paul Perez and Daniel Moore, based on the novel by John Fenimore Cooper
Starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Madeleine Stowe, Russell Means and Eric Schweig
When rugged frontiersman Hawkeye saves the Munro sisters - two newly arrived English settlers - from a Huron ambush, he and his adoptive father and brother end up in the midst of a battle between the British and the French for control of the American colonies.
Unequivocally epic and with an impressively large scale, this film does a great job at creating the world of the American frontier in 1757. It is believable right off the bat with the rural setting and the beautiful wilderness that the characters trek through.
Though it is expected for Daniel Day-Lewis to wow with his performance in no matter what movie he is in, I regret to say this is his least impressive performance that I've seen to date. That's not to say that he is bad. And I am not entirely convinced that it is his fault. The character seemed a bit dry and left much to be desired.
The story and writing provided us with many melodramatic moments you would expect to see only in a soap opera. But it felt more like a directing and editing problem than it did the performances of the actors involved.
Director Michael Mann has similar problems with most of his films. At times it feels he cares too much about the imagery and the immersive scale of the setting than he does the performances, which ultimately hurts the overall quality of the project.
Though the performances really worked against the enveloping cinematography, it is irrefutable that this is a good movie. Not as great as I would have hoped it would be. But it is certainly an impressive movie with many positive qualities. There is a reason many consider this a classic.
My Rating: 7/10
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