At first glance The Last of the Mohicans may not seem like a western as it takes place not in the western U.S.A. but upstate New York. Then of course, at the time this film takes place upstate New York was the frontier. This film contains some common western themes or tropes. Chiefly, the corruption of civilization represented by the British and French soldiers vs. the purity of the wilderness, represented by the settlers and the Indians. This comes up again and again throughout the film. Despite obtaining an agreement from General Webb guaranteeing that they can protect their families if endangered, Colonel Munro refuses to release them. Cora chooses Hawkeye over the respectable Hayward, though he still shows that he cares for her. Finally, Magua is corrupted by his contact with the white man. As Hawkeye tells the Huron Chief Senaca when trying to convince him to release Alice and Cora, "Would Huron fool Seneca into taking all the furs of all the animals of the forest for beads and strong whiskey? Those are the ways of the Yengeese and the franais traders and their masters in Europe infected with the sickness of greed. Magua's heart is twisted. He would make himself into what twisted him."
Outside of a few monologues like this, the script for this film, written by Micheal Mann and Christopher Crowe and adapted from the novel by James Fenimore Cooper, is hardly verbose. This is rather appropriate actually as this story is breathlessly paced and the characters are defined chiefly, by their actions rather than their words. As a result of this much of the character depth comes from the performances which are all really solid especially Day-Lewis and Wes Studi as Magua. Of course, the camera work and editing are incredibly important as well. Fortunately, Micheal Mann is more than up to the task. He excels at visual storytelling and his frequent collaborator Dante Spinotti, contributes some really gorgeous cinematography to the film. The score, by Trevor Jones and Randy Edelman, is infused with a Gaelic sensibility. It drives the movie forward and gives it a distinct ethnic flavor. Editor's Dov Hoenig and Arthur Schmidt effortlessly blend the score with Spinotti's visuals to create some really unforgettable sequences. Despite the movie being cut down by nearly an hour, it still succeeds incredibly well.
The film is not without certain flaws. Because so much material had to be cut, the relationship between Uncas and Alice is not very well established. This is particularly problematic at the end of the film. I shouldn't really buy that Alice throws herself off of the cliff in the climax. In addition to the fact that her despair over Uncas' death isn't well set up the whole situation is somewhat contrived. If Uncas would simply have waited for Hawkeye and Chingachook to catch up he may have fared much better than he did on his own. There's really nothing in the story that makes this situation urgent. Yet somehow the scene always feels urgent. It works for me emotionally even if, intellectually, I know it shouldn't. If that doesn't speak for Mann's talent as a filmmaker I don't know what does.
The Last of the Mohicans is one of the best westerns of the 1990's. It features solid performances, an unforgettable score, and is the work of a talented director at the top of his game. It may have its flaws but, in many ways, those flaws just leave me wishing for more. Here's hoping Mann's original 3 hour work-print is released someday.
Score: 9/10
Score: 9/10
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