The Revenant

One hundred and fifty minutes of art that offers real physical adventure in only two battles. There's clearly something wrong with a film where you spend most of the runtime thinking about the freezing crew on the other side of the camera. I haven't seen something so "wanted" in a long time. Just hand over the coveted statue and let this one fall in as technically honest and damn difficult filmmaking, which perhaps nobody even cares about in the end. PS: Hardy beats DiCaprio by a dead bear and half a horse. (01/02/2016)

Stunning cinematography, atmospheric music, a great Tom Hardy and some riveting scenes. But if the protagonist crawling through the woods for those 156 minutes had been someone I cared even a little bit about, I probably would have had a lot more fun. A good and in some ways exceptional film that I never want to see again in my life. (01/06/2016)

I was waiting for something in the style of the Black Robe in combination with McCarthy's Bloody Meridian and in a way I got it. Sadly, there was a lot of kind of mystically symbolic insertions that were frequent, pointless and above all unintentionally stupid. It would have been even better if it had kept only in the department of inhospitable wilderness, pragmatic rough trappers, Indians on the warpath, survival, endless snowy distances, howling winds, slow pace. Although it undoubtedly has a few weak or unnecessary scenes, but when it's good (which is true for most of the footage), it's damn good. Largely thanks to the raw atmosphere, poor performance of lame Leo, amazing (however traditional) grumbling Hardy and even Gleeson is surprisingly a great fit. And we need to mention the camera since there has not been anything better since There Will Be Blood. Overall, I really enjoyed it, although I had considerable reservations. (01/13/2016)

Leo will finally get his Oscar. And not because he turned in a better performance than in The Wolf of Wall Street, but because of how much he had to suffer for it. Such a large-scale and, thanks to its locations and weather, true survival movie with a stellar cast and cinematography by Lubezki does not need a thicker plot. IT IS ENOUGH THAT IT EXISTS. Just like it is enough for the Eiffel Tower to just stand there. Because for several decades there will be no other filmmaking project of similar proportions. The funny thing is that The Revenant’s lack of a denser story is criticized by the same viewers who repeatedly went to see the over-filtered Mad Max: Fury Road, in which there is not a single real exterior and someone drives a car through the desert for two hours only to decide to turn around just before reaching their destination. The story of The Revenant is a continual struggle for survival. The betrayal of a friend, meeting a Native American with a bleeding heart, helping the defenseless innocent. And the consequences of all of this. Fate and our ability to influence it. Karma. And for us contemporaries, also the realization that while we hope to have a good time, people before us hoped to survive. Every day. The Revenant’s poetic passages are not pseudo-art; they are art for masses, similar to those of Ridley’s Gladiator, just less cheesy, because Iñárritu expects some development from the mass audience over a decade. Alejandro, it’s incredible what you’re willing to do (and risk) to shoot the hitherto unseen. Chivo, you are a god. Amazing sound and makeup. By comparison, Alive and The Edge become mere snowflakes in The Revenant, flying in the wind of Dances with Wolves. Thank you, cinematography, once again after a long time. This is what I live for. (01/17/2016)

The Revenant is undoubtedly one of the best, most expensive and gnarliest survival films ever. Technically it's an absolutely flawless film, not even the biggest nerd can fault anything here. The cinematography is breathtaking, it's filmed very authentically almost without editing and at times you feel like you are right in the action. The very raw, uncompromising and chilling scenery adds a lot. Leonardo DiCaprio gives a performance of a lifetime, here he reaches the very bottom of his powers and crawls for the Oscar for the whole 2 hours 30 (although he overacts at times, but what the guy is capable of for a golden bald man is unbelievable). This is also true of Tom Hardy, who plays a spineless motherfucker from start to finish. I'd also highlight the scenes that take your breath away, the raw and brutal action (although there could have been a bit more of it), the final Hardy/Dicaprio duel, who give each other a decent thrashing and the sleeping bag made of a horse (vegetarians and horse lovers will probably rave). The downside is the slower pace, which may bore some, but Alejandro González Iñárritu undoubtedly wanted to fight for the Oscars, so there must be a piece of art here. It didn't blow my mind, but The Revenant is a must see on the big screen! Precise, fierce, raw and star-studded! Story 8/10, Atmosphere 10/10, Gore 8/10, Visuals 10/10, Action 5/10, Suspense 8/10, Humour 4/10. Entertainment 7/10. 85% I was hesitating between 4/5, in the end I give a full score. (01/18/2016)