Exclusive Review: The Revenant

While here it is:
The Revenant starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy.
The film is based on the true story of Leonardo DiCaprio's character who has a very BAD DAY.
His day goes like this: first he witnesses the death of his son (while being unable to do anything about it) and subsequently he is buried while still Alive. Both of those happen at the hands of: Tom Hardy. Leonardo DiCaprio becomes WAIT FOR IT:

THE REVENANT
Yes, that is an actual word. Though, The Red Balloon initially thought it was made up for the film, the word means: "one that returns after death." Yes, that's right Victor Frankenstein may have learned something from the Revenant (as in, Victor Frankenstein may not have needed that Lazarus fork after all.)

Keep in mind that prior to being buried alive, DiCaprio witnessed his son being burned while alive and his wife and/or love of his life killed in front of him. As if the earlier stuff on said BAD DAY wasn't bad enough.

Both actors, DiCaprio and Hardy, are superb in their portrayal of their real-life counterparts. The film itself is extremely long. As in 2 hours and 36 minutes long. The Red Balloon can't deny that the 2 hours and 31 minutes of graphic scenes are worth watching for the final five minutes of the film. The Revenant has possibly the most epic ending of any movie made all year.

Ending aside, there is a memorable scene involving Leonardo DiCaprio and a stolen horse. And let's not even delve into the scene which can only be dubbed, "DiCaprio versus Bear."

But then again, The Red Balloon, as always does not want to provide any spoilers. Leonardo DiCaprio does partake in what can only be termed the original "farm to table" experience for most of the film. As in, he grabs a fish out of the water and well - eats it - head first. And this continues with many, many more wildlife. The film is dark and at times, it seems to be at such extremes that you almost want them to flash on the screen the words, "This is entirely as it occurred in real-life." But, there have been a few embellishments to the film to say the very least. You can see it for yourself later this month.

The Revenant opens Christmas Day in limited release and January 8th nationwide.

The Round-Up

A look at some films:

The Good Dinosaur: It's rare to see a film that anyone can enjoy. Of course, there was Hotel Transylvania 2 which if you haven't yet seen you should catch (even if you didn't watch the first one.) The Good Dinosaur is a beautiful story with a heartwarming message.

Spotlight: There is no denying that this is one well written film. The acting is exceptional as well and it is worthy to watch just to see Mark Ruffalo's performance alone.

Brooklyn: This is an love story at the crux and the main character falls in love with a boy from Brooklyn. The boy happens to have a little brother who basically steals every scene he is in with his witty antics.

The Martian: It felt like this film hadn't been edited. Beyond that, there is never a genuine sentiment on the part of the Martian himself that makes the audience believe that he thinks he won't be found. That lack of emotion really comes across the screen. This film is no Gravity, which is superb. If you haven't seen Gravity, be sure to catch that film.

Spectre: This was a Spectre. It failed to achieve the same level as Skyfall and seemed to disappoint rather than bring itself to the level of more recent Bond films.

Stay tuned to The Red Balloon which will feature a full review of The Revenant opening Christmas Day, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hardy (who stars in the film Locke, a truly amazing film.) The Red Balloon will be reviewing the film next week after attending the press screening.