The Last Samurai
Director: Edward Zwick
Year Released: 2003
Rating: 1.5
Very Hollywoodized view of Japan and half-hearted apology for globalization as former American hero Tom Cruise gets captured by samurai rebels (trying to stay culturally pure while the rest of Japan switches to khakis), shows remorse over massacring American Indian families (the film, for our benefit, reenacts the atrocities in hazy detail) and realizes that there should be peace on Earth, and it should begin with Cruise. Follows typical big-movie plotting and therefore feels very familiar - anyone that's seen Glory and Braveheart should find this to be humdrum, mechanical and instantly forgettable.
