The Last of the Mohicans (1992)

“No! You stay alive! If they don’t kill you, they’ll take you north up to the Huron lands. Submit, do you hear? You’re strong! You survive! You stay alive, no matter what occurs! I will find you! No matter how long it takes, no matter how far. I will find you! ” – Hawkeye

Number of Times Seen – Between 3-5 times (Theater in ’92, DVD, 25 Aug 2008 and 1 Mar 2017)

Brief Synopsis – A frontiersman helps protect the two daughters of a British Officer as they travel during the French and Indian War.

My Take on it – This is a movie that I recall seeing in the theater back in ’92 and loved it which surprised me at the time because I was sooo bored when I read the book (or perhaps cliff notes) during high school.

Michael Mann’s version of this film is so thrilling and suspenseful and most importantly it gives us a true feeling of love between the two main characters.

Daniel Day-Lewis and Madeline Stowe have amazing chemistry together despite the fact that their characters aren’t together enough for a real romance to blossom.

The action scenes are great here and I loved the way they found landscapes and terrain that really look like they are from 250 years ago because they look so barren from man made uses.

As I mentioned before, I found the book really boring, but this adaptation really brings to life these characters and their story despite the deviations and changes from the original source material.

I think this actually helps make the story more thrilling and adventurous for us to watch.

The musical score for this film is amazingly done and it makes the story even much more emotional IMHO.

Bottom Line – Day-Lewis and Stowe have amazing chemistry together despite their characters not knowing each other for so long.  Great adaptation of a pretty boring book that makes things quite thrilling and suspenseful partially because it deviates so much from the original source novel.  Mann does a great job of taking this story to new and higher levels.  Amazing musical score makes this story so much more emotional. Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – Many long nights were spent filming the siege scenes. Due to the expansive area involved, loudspeakers were installed around the battlefield and fort so directions could be easily given to the hundreds of cast and crew. One night after many long hours, Mann was heard to shout over the speakers, “What’s that orange light? Turn out that orange light!” After a pause another voice (an A.D.?) came over the speakers stating, “That’s the SUN, Michael.” (From IMDB)

Rating – Oscar Worthy

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