The Revenant

Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s The Revenant is one of the most critically acclaimed feature films of 2016 so far. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio as historical 19^th Century frontiersman Hugh Glass in a merciless fight for survival, man against the elements, dodging the likes of Native American pursuers, rival French trappers and wild animals in a journey to attain revenge against murderer Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy), the man who buried him alive, leading to the film’s namesake when Glass rises from a shallow grave to track him down.

A great example of Iñárritu’s directing is his use of long takes. The long duration of shots and camera movement is involved, tense, brings atmosphere, and gives the illusion of the audience’s presence in the environment. The cinematography is quite impressive, utilising widescreen and allowing the audience to enjoy backgrounds and environments even in close-up shots. Another enjoyable example of Iñárritu’s direction, in at least one instance, comes in the form of a transition in a scene where an exhausted DiCaprio’s breath on the camera lens simulates a gradual fade to white.

Praised above all else by most audiences is DiCaprio’s performance, which earned him a Golden Globe for Best Actor under the category of Drama. DiCaprio’s character has very little dialogue throughout the film, even dispensing with any noticeable use of inner monologue, which is a huge advantage on the storytelling. Not only providing verbal abstractness that audiences can use to identify with the character in their own way, the lack of dialogue allows the film to tell the story through the character’s actions and emotiveness. This is the story of a man alone in the wilderness, doing whatever he can to survive, injured in a harsh winter (though one might wonder how he doesn’t get gangrene from it). It is beautifully simplistic. DiCaprio’s expressions of desperation, pain, anger, melancholy and rare relief are incredibly intense. The film also offers a good contrast from most revenge stories nowadays; as far as antiheroes go, it’s good to see one who is sympathetic and has humanising qualities.

Joining DiCaprio in the most central of the cast are Tom Hardy as the antagonist Fitzgerald, Will Poulter as the young trapper Jim Bridger, Domhall Gleeson as the Captain Andrew Henry, and Forrest Goodluck as Hugh Glass’ mixed race/half-native American son Hawk.

Fitzgerald is easily the harshest single character of the story. His deceitfulness and determination to make a profit, even to the point of committing murder, teamed with his discriminative tenancies towards Hawk, make him an identifiably intense and merciless villain. Bridger is played as a well-meaning young man, if an inexperienced frontiersman, who is reluctantly manipulated into following the intimidating Fitzgerald after they leave the injured Hugh Glass to his fate. The character takes on sacrifices to help the protagonist in the first act, and so repentant for his abandonment in the following acts.

Captain Andrew Henry is represented as a kindly and honorable leader thrust into compromising situations and forced to make either humane or difficult choices. Hawk is an image of a young man struggling with hostility, often resorting to outward aggression. His father-son relationship with Glass is quickly established, denoting loyalty to one another while making mention of Hawk’s challenges in terms of age and race. These however do not necessarily become a theme of the film given the events of the story. Overall the main characters are quite basic. They are simple, which is arguably efficient. The protagonist is emphasised through his acts and tribulations, though it is difficult to recognise his emotional need. Most character development is illustrated through flashbacks, dreams or anecdotes, which from a linear point of view this would work against the film, but from an objectively non-linear point of view it works without interfering with the tone or the story.

A hand goes to the makeup artists, costume designers, set designers and colour grading that brought the visual style to this feature. The appearance of scars and other wounds compliment DiCaprio’s intense acting and the urgency of his character’s situations. The naturalistic environments are detailed from the background to the midground to the foreground, and the consistent cold setting of colour grading brings an unfriendly tone complimented by a soundtrack that is quiet, tense and melancholic.

The Revenant is an inventively directed, effortful in its design and intensely performed in, with an interesting tone, and moments and narrative of simplicity that all work greatly to the film’s advantage. The cinematography is engaging and the writing, particularly in DiCaprio’s dialogue (or rather lack thereof), is incredibly effective. The Revenant is a truly well made film and definitely worthy of viewership.