1992’s “The Last of the Mohicans” is truly thrilling – spectacularly shot and as cleverly as emotionally narrated by master director/co-screenwriter Michael Mann (“Heat,” “Collateral”). In the four-star review FILMSTARTS, our author René Malgo says: “The adventure film has the thriller qualities that are common in Mann’s works, but is also convincing as a drama. Depth is conveyed through thoughtful dialogues. The pathos is kept within proper limits and the clichés are cultivated in pleasant doses […] ‘The Last of the Mohicans’ is powerful, stirring, energetic and yet somehow beautifully old-fashioned and wildly romantic.”
“The Last of the Mohicans” can be seen today, February 25, 2024 at 8:15 PM on arte. If you miss the date, the title is available on Blu-ray, DVD or paid video-on-demand:
You can expect three-time Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis (“Gangs Of New York”), Madeleine Stowe (“12 Monkeys”) and Russell Means (“Natural Born Killers”) in the leading roles. Also present: Wes Studi (“Enemies – Hostiles”), Jodhi May (“The Witcher”), Steven Waddington (“1492 – The Conquest of Paradise”) and Eric Schweig from “Casino Jack”.
“The Last of the Mohicans” at Arte: that is the story
During the Seven Years’ War, which was fought virtually globally, the competing colonial powers Great Britain and France also fought for dominance in North America from 1756 to 1763. The troops there were supported by their allies from the ranks of the native tribes.
The year is 1757, when Cora (Stowe) and Alice (May) want to visit their father, British Colonel Munro (Maurice Roeves), at his fort at the front. Her companion Major Heyward (Waddington) finds a local Huron scout to guide them. But with the intention of killing them all, Magua (Studi) lures the tour group into a trap.
However, Trapper Hawkeye (Day-Lewis), his friend, the Mohican chief Chingachgook (Means), and his son Uncas (Schweig) are nearby. The trio recognizes the situation, frees the hostages and then takes charge themselves. But the road to the fortress is long and full of dangers, of which the insulted and wounded Magua is only one…
The best of all adjustments
Michael Mann’s work is based on the novel of the same name by James Fenimore Cooper (“Leather Stocking”), which was published in 1826. The book has been adapted for film many times – including in 1920 as a German silent film with the legendary Bela Lugosi and in 1936 in the US with Randolph Scott. If the majority of critics and experts are to be believed, Mann’s adaptation is clearly the best yet.
Along with his co-writer Christopher Crowe (“Fear”), Mann made some changes to the original story for the script, but managed to keep the core of it. The loss of epicness caused by the omission of some subplots is visually more than compensated for by the fantastic panoramas of lead cinematographer Dante Spinotti (“LA Confidential”). The script also adds a successful, completely authentic-looking love story between Day-Lewis and Stowe’s characters.
‘The Last of the Mohicans’ is also so moving because Mann presents his film in an uncomplicated and suspense-oriented manner. The brutality of the war and the individual struggle for survival of those involved are depicted in sometimes quite drastic images. However, there is no awkward black and white painting. The designated villains also have human traits and are allowed to say intelligent things that make us think.
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