At a Glance

Captain Nathan Algren served in the American Civil War where he risked his life for his country. He served out his career in the West where the battle was with Indians and it was here that he became disillusioned and lost. In a far-off land a celebrated Samurai warrior, Katsumoto, is learning about change. A life of service to the Emperor and the country is being replaced with survival in a time of modernisation. Fate has it that both men will face each other and make a stand against those that would threaten honour and values. Captain Nathan Algren is employed to train a group of Japanese conscripts who will replace the Samurai warrior. But he is captured by the Samurai, an enemy he comes to respect and for whom he is prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Detailed Information

Imagine a cross between Gladiator and Kill Bill. Can't quite conjure up the image? Then let Tom Cruise do it for you with his new action epic, The Last Samurai.

Starring Cruise alongside such Brit talent as Timothy Spall and Billy Connolly, it tells the story of a burnt out American captain, Nathan Algren, who is recruited to train a Japanese army fighting the 1877 Samurai rebellion to use modern weapons. But when Algren is captured by the Samurai, he soon begins to realise that the people he once thought of as his enemies may well be his allies...

This is undoubtedly Tom Cruise's most action packed and breathtaking movie to date. Filmed primarily in New Zealand, it features stunning backdrop, powerful visual effects and a histrically epic voyage of discovery. Directed by the highly aclaimed Edward Zwick (Legends of the Fall), it was nominated for four Academy Awards including Best Supporting Actor for Ken Watanabe), and three Golden Globe awards (including Best Actor for Tom Cruise).

The film, like his previous Mission: Impossible, is produced by Cruise and it gives him his most explicitly heroic role in years. Mixing his action man talents with a role as emotionally deep as Algren is the perfect role for Cruise. His performance is matched by Japan's Ken Watanabe , who plays the Samurai leader; rarely do we see two talented actors play so well off each other.

The Last Samurai comes to DVD at a very good time. Interest in all things Japanese is at an all time high in the western world (just witness the success off Kill Bill, The Ring) but this film allows us to go a bit deeper than air kicks, exploring the history of feudal Japan, a time that is not really exploited much in Western Cinema.

The two-disc DVD is loaded with groundbreaking Special Features including a directors Video Journal, Additional Scenes and two documentaries.