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The Last of the Mohicans (1992 film)

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The Last of the Mohicans
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMichael Mann
Screenplay by
  • Michael Mann
  • Christopher Crowe
Adaptation by
Produced by
  • Michael Mann
  • Hunt Lowry
Starring
CinematographyDante Spinotti
Edited by
Music by
Production
company
Distributed by
Release dates
  • August 26, 1992 (1992-08-26) (France)
  • September 25, 1992 (1992-09-25) (United States)
Running time
112 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
Languages
Budget$40 million[2]
Box office$75.5 million (North America)[2]

The Last of the Mohicans is a 1992 American epic historical drama film set in 1757 during the French and Indian War. It was written and directed by Michael Mann and was based on James Fenimore Cooper's 1826 novel The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757 and George B. Seitz's 1936 film adaptation, owing more to the film than the novel. The film stars Daniel Day-Lewis and Madeleine Stowe, with Jodhi May, Russell Means, Wes Studi, Eric Schweig, and Steven Waddington in supporting roles.

The soundtrack features music by Trevor Jones and Randy Edelman, and the song "I Will Find You" by Clannad. The main theme of the film is taken from the tune "The Gael" by Scottish singer-songwriter Dougie MacLean.

Released on September 25, 1992 in the United States, The Last of the Mohicans was met with positive reviews and commercial success during its box-office run.

Plot

In 1757, British Army Major Duncan Heyward arrives in Albany, New York during the French and Indian War. He has been sent to serve Colonel Edmund Munro, who is the commander of Fort William Henry in the Adirondack Mountains. Heyward is tasked with escorting the colonel's two daughters, Cora and Alice, to their father. Before they leave, Heyward asks Cora to marry him but she does not give him an answer.

An Iroquois named Magua is tasked with guiding Heyward, the two women, and a troop of British soldiers to the fort but instead he turns out to be a Huron who leads the party into a Huron ambush. Mohican chief Chingachgook, his son Uncas, and his white, adopted son, "Hawkeye", kill the Hurons; only Magua escapes. The trio agree to take the women and Heyward to the fort. During the trek, attraction grows between Cora and Hawkeye as well as Uncas and Alice.

When the party reach the fort, they find it under siege by the French and their Huron allies. They sneak in and are greeted by Colonel Munro, who asks Heyward about his request for reinforcements. The major becomes jealous of the noticeable feelings developing between Cora and Hawkeye. He finally learns she will not marry him.

Munro refuses the militiamen's request for permission to leave because the French and Indian allies are raiding homesteads along the colony's borders. After Hawkeye helps them sneak away, he is arrested for sedition and sentenced to hang. However, without reinforcements, Munro is forced to seek a parley with the besieging general Louis-Joseph de Montcalm, who demands that the British abandon the fort. Munro, who is greatly outnumbered, has little choice but to accept the terms. But Magua is furious because the surrender has robbed him of his chance to kill Munro who once hurt him and his family.

Colonel Munro, leads his remaining soldiers, and civilians out of the fort. Away from the fort, Huron warriors begin a massacre of the column. Magua personally kills Munro by cutting out his heart. Hawkeye, Uncas, and Chingachgook fight their way out taking Cora, Alice, Heyward, and a few other stragglers with them. They take shelter behind a waterfall but the vengeful Magua eventually catches up with them, capturing Heyward and the women.

Magua takes his three prisoners to a Huron settlement. While he is addressing a sachem, Hawkeye interrupts him with a plea to save their lives. The paramount chief rules: Heyward should be returned to the British, Alice is given to Magua for the wrongs done to him by Munro, but Cora will be burned alive. Although Hawkeye is told he may go in peace for walking unarmed into a Huron village, he offers to take Cora's place. Heyward, who was acting as the French translator, trades his life for Cora's instead.

After Hawkeye and Cora have left the village, he mercifully shoots Heyward as he is being burned alive. Chingachgook, Uncas, and Hawkeye then chase after Magua's party to rescue Alice. Uncas, who has raced ahead, falls from a cliff after being mortally wounded by Magua. Seeing his death, Alice falls to her own death despite Magua's attempts to dissuade her. Eventually, Hawkeye and Chingachgook slay most of the remaining Hurons before Chingachgook personally kills Magua.

Hawkeye and Cora watch as Chingachgook prays to the Great Spirit to receive Uncas, proclaiming himself "the last of the Mohicans."

Plot Differences from Novel

Scholar Diane Price Herndl summarizes the primary differences between the novel and Mann's film: "The plot of Mann's film bears only a slim resemblance to the plot of the novel. Natty Bumppo, the misanthropic loner whose racial background is emphatically "without a cross" in the novel, becomes Nathaniel Poe, ladies' man, who is still white, but dresses like an Indian and claims the Mohicans as his people and his family. Duncan Heyward is neither a future leader nor a Scot, but becomes an Englishman who is martyred to save Nathaniel and Cora. The romantic "marriage" subplot which is so minor in the novel changes to the major attraction of the film: Nathaniel and Cora fall in love; Uncas's secret love for the "dark" (but now unquestionably white) Cora is converted to an acknowledged infatuation with the child-like blonde Alice; and Cora and Alice switch places?now Cora is the true republican mother and Alice the victim. A whole new subplot involving colonial resistance to England is added; Magua is given a new and more understandable motivation for his hatred of Munro; and the "Indian Way," generally, is accorded more respect and sympathy. True savagery, the film tells us, is learned from the British."[3]

Cast

Production

Development

Much care was taken with recreating accurate costumes and props. Daniel Winkler made the tomahawks used in the film and knifemaker Randall King made the knives.[4] Wayne Watson is the maker of Hawkeye's "Killdeer" rifle used in the film. The gunstock war club made for Chingachgook was created by Jim Yellow Eagle. Magua's tomahawk was made by Fred A. Mitchell of Odin Forge & Fabrication.

Costumes were originally designed by multiple Academy Award winner James Acheson, but he left the film and had his name removed because of artistic differences with Mann. Designer Elsa Zamparelli was brought in to finish.

Locations

Despite the film taking place in upstate New York, according to the film credits, it was filmed mostly in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Locations used include Lake James, Chimney Rock Park and The Biltmore Estate. Some of the waterfalls that were used in the movie include Hooker Falls, Triple Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, and High Falls, all located in the DuPont State Recreational Forest. Another of these falls was Linville Falls, in the mountains of North Carolina. Also Hickory Nut Falls at Chimney Rock was in the movie near the end. Scenes of Albany were shot in Asheville, NC at The Manor on Charlotte Street.

Soundtrack

Main article: The Last of the Mohicans (soundtrack)

Alternate versions

The film was released theatrically in the U.S. on September 25, 1992 at a length of 112 minutes. It was released at this same length on VHS in the U.S. on June 23, 1993. It was re-edited to a length of 117 minutes[5] for its U.S. DVD release on November 23, 1999,[6] which was billed as the "Director's Expanded Edition". It was again re-edited for its U.S. Blu-ray release on October 5, 2010,[7] this time billed as the "Director's Definitive Cut", with a length of 114 mins.[8]

Reception

Critical response

The Last of the Mohicans opened with critics praising the film for its cinematography and music. Critic Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film three stars and called it "quite an improvement on Cooper's all but unreadable book, and a worthy successor to the Randolph Scott version," going on to say that "The Last of the Mohicans is not as authentic and uncompromised as it claims to be — more of a matinee fantasy than it wants to admit — but it is probably more entertaining as a result."[9]

Desson Howe of The Washington Post classified the film as "glam-opera" and "the MTV version of gothic romance".[10] Rita Kempley of the Post recognized the "heavy drama," writing that the film "sets new standards when it comes to pent-up passion", but commented positively on the "spectacular scenery".[11]

At review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes the film has a "Certified Fresh" rating of 93% based on reviews from 41 critics, with an average rating of 7.74/10. The site's consensus states: "The Last of the Mohicans is a breathless romantic adventure that plays loose with history -- and comes out with a richer action movie for it."[12]

Awards

The film won the Academy Award for Best Sound (Chris Jenkins, Doug Hemphill, Mark Smith, Simon Kaye).[13]

American Film Institute recognition:

Box office

The film opened in the United States on September 25, 1992, in 1,856 theaters. It was the number 1 movie on its opening weekend.[15][16] By the end of its first weekend, The Last of the Mohicans had generated $10,976,661, and by the end of its domestic run, the film had made $75,505,856.[2] It was ranked the 17th highest-grossing film of 1992 in the United States.[17]

References

  1. ^ "The Last of the Mohicans". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c "The Last of the Mohicans (1992)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved March 18, 2007.
  3. ^ Diane Price Herndl, "Style and the Sentimental Gaze in "The Last of the Mohicans"" Narrative, vol. 9, no. 3 (Oct. 2001).
  4. ^ Haskew, Mike (2006-09-01). "Star-Spangled Hawks Take Wing". Vol. 33, no. 9. Blade Magazine. pp. 30–37.
  5. ^ Gerald Wurm (2010-04-07). "Last Of The Mohicans, The (Comparison: Theatrical Version - Director's Expanded Edition)". Movie-Censorship.com. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  6. ^ "Last of the Mohicans (Director's Expanded Edition): Daniel Day-Lewis, Madeleine Stowe, Russell Means, Eric Schweig, Jodhi May, Steven Waddington, Wes Studi, Maurice Roëves, Patrice Chéreau, Edward Blatchford, Terry Kinney, Tracey Ellis, Michael Mann, Christopher Crowe, Daniel Moore, James Fenimore Cooper, John L. Balderston, Paul Perez, Philip Dunne: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  7. ^ "The Last of the Mohicans Blu-ray: Director's Definitive Cut". Blu-ray.com. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  8. ^ Gerald Wurm (2010-10-29). "Last of the Mohicans, The (Comparison: Theatrical Version - Director's Definitive Cut)". Movie-Censorship.com. Retrieved 2016-12-18.
  9. ^ Roger Ebert (September 25, 1992). "The Last of The Mohicans". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2007-03-18.
  10. ^ Desson Howe (September 25, 1992). "The Last of The Mohicans". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-03-18.
  11. ^ Rita Kempley (September 25, 1992). "The Last of The Mohicans". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-03-18.
  12. ^ Rotten Tomatoes (March 18, 2007). "Freshness count". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2007-03-18.
  13. ^ "The 65th Academy Awards (1993) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  14. ^ AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes and Villains Nominees
  15. ^ "Weekend Box Office". The Los Angeles Times. 1992-10-06. Retrieved 2011-05-30.
  16. ^ Fox, David J. (1992-10-06). "Box Office Hasn't Seen the Last of 'Mohicans". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-05-30.
  17. ^ "1992 Yearly Box Office Results". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
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