I went to see The Last Samurai this weekend. I initially planned on seeing both this and LOTR but I did not find the time to attend both shows and felt that I would enjoy The Last Samurai more since fewer people would be in the theatre. I will simply wait until next weekend after the crowds have thinned out somewhat so that I can view LOTR in peace.
As for The Last Samurai, I found it to be a very enjoyable movie that opens your eyes to several historical events and truths.
First, most of the film takes place in Japan, specifically in a small village in the Japanese mountains and they seem to have done a remarkable job of trying to recreate the lifestyle in that period. It is intriguing to watch these men and women whose entire life seems to be absorbed in the code of the Samurai (service). Within that Samurai code they find the meaning for their lives. The serve and honor their families by being honorable warriors. They serve their country by being fiercely loyal to the Emperor. They serve themselves as well, by performing their duty well and living with honor. This is the lesson that Captain Nathan Algren (Tom Cruise) must learn.
The film also explores American history, specifically the battles against the American Indians. As you probably can reason from the setting of the movie, there is also a bit of time spent on the first overtures made by the Japanese to enter the world stage. Many of these issues play out on the screen but can also cause us to look at the current situations we find ourselves in. Should we involve ourselves in another country�s civil war without really knowing what they are fighting for and against? Do our own interests sometimes cause us to jump into agreements thinking that we will somehow come out on top and untarnished?
Article comments
1 - Aaman
They were a group that had realized that their lives were in the hands of a higher power and had come to terms with that fact. All they could hope to do was their duty and they found peace in knowing that in that they were succeeding. Everything else in their lives was not up to them and they were reconciled to that fact and did not fight against it.
You don't know much about Buddhism, do you? In Buddhism, EVERYTHING is a cause and effect - there is no 'higher power' directing events. Of course, many of the Japanese follow distorted, animistic forms of Buddhism and Shintoism, so your statement isn't very wrong as applied specifically to them.
Excellent review, otherwise, though. THe film was good.