The Last of the Mohicans (1992) ****

Wes Studi as Magua

Based on the 1936 film adaptation of the same name, The Last of the Mohicans originally derived from the classic American writer James Fenimore Cooper. Directed by the incredibly consistent Michael Mann and starring such talents as Daniel Day Lewis, Madeleine Stowe, and Wes Studi, this film was unsurprisingly impressive. It takes place during 1757 in the midst of the French and Indian War in which the French and British fought for control of the American frontier; the French employed natives to aid them in their conquest. The film itself is an excellent period piece of adventure and action made with great attention to detail and aesthetic realism. It's a nice treat to see Russell Means have a relatively significant role in the movie also; I always thought of him as an activist for natives first and foremost but his acting was respectable. But the real standout is Studi whose fierce performance as the Huron Magua is a defining example of the kind of fire and heart that is characteristic of just about every role he's played to date; he embodies a natural warrior spirit that carries over to the screen with such passion and intimidation that few actors possess.

But the gripe I have with this film - and its novel for that matter - is that the title itself is entirely fictional. The Mohicans still exist to this day although they are now collectively named the Mahicans. Since their contact with the Anglos, their people faced an unusually strong conversion to Christianity by Protestant missionaries and have since settled primarily in the state of Wisconsin away from the Hudson Valley they originally resided in. The other problem I have is that the Huron (aka Wendat) are mostly portrayed as unrelenting savages of war with murky motives and allegiances. The fact of the matter is, many tribes engaged in warfare against other natives and the Huron were not unique in this regard. The Huron were actually devastated by the Iroquois who had allied with the British. So despite the impression one may get from watching this film, the Huron were not truly against the English but only on the grounds that the rival Iroquois were in alliance with them.