The Last of the Mohicans (1992)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Michael Mann

Writers (WGA):

James Fenimore Cooper (novel)
John L. Balderston (adaptation) ...

Release Date:

25 September 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Romance | War

Tagline:

The first American hero.

Plot:

Three trappers protect a British Colonel's daughters in the midst of the French and Indian War.

Plot Keywords:

Mohican | Settler | Battle | Native American | Fort

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 5 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Daniel Day-Lewis	...	Hawkeye (Nathaniel Poe)
Madeleine Stowe	...	Cora Munro
Russell Means	...	Chingachgook
Eric Schweig	...	Uncas
Jodhi May	...	Alice Munro
Steven Waddington	...	Maj. Duncan Heyward
Wes Studi	...	Magua
Maurice Roëves	...	Col. Edmund Munro
Patrice Chéreau	...	Gen Montcalm
Edward Blatchford	...	Jack Winthrop
Terry Kinney	...	John Cameron
Tracey Ellis	...	Alexandra Cameron
Justin M. Rice	...	James Cameron
Dennis Banks	...	Ongewasgone
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Capt. Beams

MPAA:

Rated R for violence.

Runtime:

112 min | USA:117 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French | Mohawk

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #31878) | Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | France:Unrated | Brazil:12 | UK:15 (video rating) (1993) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-14 | Germany:16 | Ireland:15 | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 (original rating) | USA:PG-13 (edited version)

Filming Locations:

Asheville, North Carolina, USA

Company:

Morgan Creek Productions

Trivia:

The only version of the film available on DVD in the US is Michael Mann's 1999 re-edited director's cut, released by Fox. However the film is distributed overseas by Warner Bros and they have released the original theatrical cut on DVD in both England and France.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the messenger runner sequence, the sky above Hawkeye and the others changes between shots, showing different cloud patterns and periods of twilight.

Quotes:

Cora Munro: The whole world's on fire isn't it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Animaniacs: Video Review/When Mice Ruled the Earth (#1.47)" (????)

Soundtrack:

I WILL FIND YOU

The ultimate early Western romance.

This film, for reasons that are not completely obvious to me, struck a chord. It was in part the amazing location shots, partly the characters, partly the music and the action sequences. As for the (relatively) under-developed romance between the hero and heroine - all I can say is that the line that Hawkeye delivers when Cora Munro challenges this rough colonial who has the temerity to gaze upon her (a colonel's daughter) and says (essentially): 'Who are you looking at?' Hawkeye answers: 'You, Ma'am. I'm looking at you.' Priceless.

Interestingly, archeologists have recently excavated the site of Fort William Henry and discovered many interesting things, none of which contradict the events described by Fenimore Cooper. The attack on the defeated column in the woods also appears to be historically accurate.

This film, though imperfect, ranks with me as one of the best action movies of all time.