Ebert & Roeper - The Last Samurai

Ebert and Roeper review The Last Samurai starring Tom Cruise , Ken Watanabe , Billy Connolly and Timothy Spall . Directed by Edward Zwick .

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Ebert
• Roeper
• The
• Last
• Samurai
• Tom
• Cruise
• Ken
• Watanabe
• Billy
• Connolly
• Timothy
• Spall
• Edward
• Zwick

[LiesAPlane]

Coming soon to theaters: "The Last Nigga on Earth"....starring Tom Hanks.

[egretdingo]

@LiesAPlane Samurai is plural.

[sadlobster1]

@Elfrunner Oh dude, I had no idea that was the case for the Native Americans. I thought some of them were building casinos because they forgot about their heritage

[Elfrunner]

@sadlobster1

Yes, you got to hand it to the Japanese for being so resilient. And no worries. I wasn't mistaking anything for sarcasm. ;) About the Native Americans, though, they really don't have a choice these days. They're virtually ignored in the country and don't have many options to choose from, so it's either casinos or homelessness, and way too many Natives are homeless in America.

[sadlobster1]

@Elfrunner Oh...thank you so, so, so much for your reassuring words. It's pleasing to know that unlike some parts of the world; where some of us in the younger generation don't wish to care about their heritage, the Japanese still respect their history and bloodlines.

FYI; I'm not speaking sarcastically, I mean every word of my comment. Furthermore, I love being an American and I love my country but it sickens me to hear that some Native Americans are building casinos on sacred land

[Elfrunner]

@sadlobster1

You'd never see them build a Wal-Mart or fast food restaurant over an ancestral monument. The Japanese hold the spirits of the ancestors in high regard to their daily life. You might see something like that in America only because America is a young country with no values, but not in Japan.

[sadlobster1]

@Elfrunner Your comment is awesomely reassuring. It's great that the Japanese are so adaptable.

I was just worried that when the day came that I would visit Japan; that maybe one of their cultural sites like the Asakusa Temple or the Samurai monuments would be mowed down to build something stupid in its place like a Wal-Mart, a movie theater or another part of a freeway.

But I'm glad you assured me that the Japanese still hold true to their ancestry

[Elfrunner]

@sadlobster1

They do remember, and I think it's really branded into their souls. Sure, they have adopted western technology and styles, but they also make them their own. If anything, Japan is one of the most adaptable countries on the planet, but can make what they assimilate seem like it was theirs to begin with. They are a very focused and disciplined people. If they brought the samurai back, I don't think anybody would notice that they were even gone for over a century.

[sadlobster1]

@commandershadebetter I highly agree with what you're saying, my friend. It's like the emperor Meiji said near the end of the movie, we cannot forget who we are or where we come from (very inspiring words.)

Lately though; even though the saying is from a movie, I've wondered if the Japanese people of today still remember their traditions. I keep reading reports about how Japan's people are forgetting the "old ways," as it's called.

It's sad really

[thechallenger9000]

does anyone else think eberts voice ages like 30 years between this and superman returns?

[jp3813]

Not original but well-executed film. Borrows from Dances with Wolves but it delivers where Avatar failed.

[robotpanda77]

How do you make a samurai movie and not give the audience some naked geisha titties? I mean come on, what else are movies for? If I am going to pay $9 I expect to see more than just Cruise looking wistful.