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WSR Detailed DVD Review
Last Samurai, The
Widescreen
Genre: Drama

Reviewed In Issue 85 (Jun 2004) Of Widescreen Review®

Stars:
Tom Cruise, Ken Watanabe, Timothy Spall, Billy Connolly, Tony Goldwyn, Hiroyuki Sanada, Masato Harada, Koyuki & William Atherton

WSR Review Scores
WSR Picture Rating: 4.5
DD Sound Rating: 4.5
DTS Sound Rating: NA
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Reference Systems
Critics' Composite Score: 3.5
Internet Links
http://www.warnervideo.com
http://www.lastsamurai.com
Special Features
Director Edward Zwick offers an audio commentary track with the movie on Disc One of this two-disc DVD set. Special features on Disc Two include the 13-minute Tom Cruise: A Warrior


 DVD General Information

(Studio/Distributor): Warner Home Video
(Catalog Number): 28383
(MPAA Rating): R
(Rating Reason):

Strong violence and battle sequences
(Retail Price): $29.95
(DVD Type): Two-Disc Set: DVD-9 & DVD-5
(Widescreen Edition): Yes
(Full Screen Edition): No
(Anamorphic Widescreen): Yes
(Running Time In Minutes): 154
(Color Type): Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access): Yes
(Closed Captioned): Yes
(Regional Coding): 1
(Theatrical Year): 2003
(Theatrical Release): Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release): No
(DVD Release Date): 05/04/04
(THX® Digitally Mastered): No

 Credits Information

(Director): Edward Zwick
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  DVD Picture Information

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  DVD Sound Information

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  WSR Narrative Review
Story Synopsis:
A veteran of the U.S. Civil War, Captain Nathan Algren (Cruise) is hired by the Emperor Meiji to train a Japanese army as Western soldiers to defeat samurai warriors. Upon arriving in Japan in 1876, Algren is met with great uncertainty but steps forward to complete the job for which he is hired. His army is comprised of mere peasants with little or no experience in battle, and they are expected to go up against the samurai Katsumoto and his sophisticated rebels much too soon. When Algren is captured by the enemy, he is taken to their village and kept so that Katsumoto may learn more about this strange Western warrior. But what Algren would never have expected was how much he was to learn and inevitably respect the ways of the samurai. "The Last Samurai" is another stirring Civil War-era epic directed by Edward Zwick ("Glory"). (Suzanne Hodges)

DVD Picture:
John Toll

Soundtrack:
The Dolby

This Disc Contains The Following WSR-Rated Superb Qualities:
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