Last of the Mohicans (1992)
Last of the Mohicans (1992), directed by Michael Mann.
This is a vivid -- and I think entirely successful -- combination of period detail and historical reenactment with deeply romantic action adventure. We pass into a world of the past, but also a world that is both imaginary and immensely involving.
When we get to the Huron village and see the Sachem with those rock cliffs in the distance behind him: the feeling of having passed into a distant wilderness realm is very strong. His throne-room is all of outdoors.
Back on the frontier we have a society of colonials and Mohawk villages and homesteads living side by side in amity. Fact or fantasy: I don't know.
All the actors are tremendous, but I want to single out a few:
Oddly enough, for all his deep immersion in and physical commitment to the role, Daniel Day-Lewis seems like the most modern character, possibly because of a few witty quips.
Madeleine Stowe does the heavy lifting in the romance plot. Strong willed, used to war, working in the primitive surgery, she melts in the presence of her manly frontiersman.
As the younger sister, Jodhi May wanted to see the wilderness. About half a day of that is enough and she is in mute trauma for the rest of the film.
Wes Studi's intensity as Magua is terrifying. How did he do that? I can't imagine what it was like while filming. In Alice's last moments something else emerges, old feelings from before he became an avenger.
Everyone runs but activist Russell Means at age 52 is really working those mountain slopes. (What is that huge blue chopping weapon Chingachgook carries? It looks like a piece of an alien spacecraft).
Beautiful photography by Dante Spinotti -- Manhunter (1986), Heat (1995), L.A. Confidential (1997). Gorgeous landscapes.
Trevor Jones and Randy Edelman get credit for the majestic score, with the main theme adapted from Dougie MacLean's "The Gael". We also have:
Phil Cunningham's "The House in Rose Valley".
"I Will Find You" by Clannad, which is Enya's family, although I don't think that is her singing.
Filmed in North Carolina.
Historical notes:
The French and Indian War was the western front in the global Seven Years' War between England and France, sometimes called the first World War.
The Siege of Fort William Henry and subsequent massacre really happened. The French and British commanders are given their actual names in the story.
The film credited not only James Fenimore Cooper's novel, but Philip Dunne's screenplay for the 1936 version.
I read the book and it is tough sledding. Mark Twain used to flay strips off of Cooper for bad writing and ludicrous plots. See Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses.
Available on Blu-ray with commentary by the director. It's mainly about the production and historical context. He seems to have a deep knowledge of the times. As a child he saw the 1936 version projected in a church basement and it left an impression.
The film has been through a couple of home video revisions. One had an extended lecture by Means in the last scene which just killed the emotion and dramatic flow. The version I have is the "Director's Definitive Cut" which is closer to the original theatrical version. Which is fine: sorrow, a few words to the Great Spirit, bring up the theme and mountain landscapes, and out. Very moving.
The subtitles have some amusing errors:
The military drums are described as "tribal" (well, you could make a case...)
Hawkeye's English name is Nathaniel Bumppo; the subtitles call him "Mr. Poe". (Later: I see "Poe" is the name used in the screenplay).
A Dutch feudal lord of colonial New York is a Patrune not a "poltroon" (a coward). See Vincent Price in Dragonwyck (1946) as an example of the former.
