The Last Samurai (2003)

Beautiful to look at…but clichés run rampant. The trailers had already told me the story (disillusioned soldier learns the way of the Samurai), and there were absolutely no surprises in the script. Watanabe turns in a lovely performance -- his Oscar nom was deserved -- but Cruise is always Cruise, which isn't a bad thing, in general, but it certainly isn't easy to overlook in a period film.

C+