The Last Samurai

The story took place during the early modernization of Japan, when the young Emperor power’s was weakened by influence of American power. The country was pushed to be modernized and westernized which included training the new modern army in Japan to replace the old way of Samurai. An American War Captain named Nathan Algren, an alcoholic soul-lost veteran, was hired to do the duty. However, on the first attack on the Samurai, Algren was captured as a hostage. Living as a part of the Samurai, Algren eventually found his lost soul through learning the great Samurai’s ways of life.

The first and obvious thing I can see from this movie is how the American has an influence over Japan. It was the big time of change in Japan when American had tried so hard to crack Japan’s isolation policy at that time. Moreover, the differences between the two cultures, American and Japan, were emphasized clearly in the movie which I can learn many interesting facts from it. The second thing I got from this movie is the American’s image from the Japanese natives’ point of view. While American thought that they were ‘civilized’ and Japan was ‘barbarian’, their coward methods in using guns and rifles in the battles, or their impure way in judging value of things make them actually a brutal and immoral themselves.

For me, it might not be the very most impressive film I’ve ever watched, but it surely is one of the best films in many aspects. I’m kind of impressed many things in this movie, including scenes, narration, techniques and especially the casts. I think the film reflects the message of the director clearly. I would recommend you to watch the movie because entertainment is not the only thing you will gain from this movie, The Last Samurai.

P.S. In fact, there are not American involved in Japanese military.