The Last of the Mohicans (1992 film)
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The Last of the Mohicans is a 1992 historical epic film set in 1757 during the French and Indian War. It was directed by Michael Mann and based on James Fenimore Cooper's classic novel, although it owes more to George B. Seitz's 1936 film adaption than the source novel.
The main cast includes Daniel Day-Lewis, Madeleine Stowe, Russell Means, Wes Studi, Eric Schweig and Jodhi May.
The film's style-over-substance nature was not lost on Desson Howe of The Washington Post, who called the movie "glam-opera" and "the MTV version of gothic romance". Howe added that "Day-Lewis doesn't act so much as bare himself, fire flintlocks, and pose in picturesque positions". The Washington Post
The film is set in upstate New York, but was shot in or near North Carolina's Great Smoky Mountains. The soundtrack features music by Trevor Jones and Randy Edelman, and a song by Clannad.
Differences from the novel
As the case was with all the film adaptions of The Last of the Mohicans, several changes and cuts had to be made from the original material for a feasible movie. Other than a markedly more concise story, the major change to the story was that Alice and Cora Munro's roles were partly swapped: the main romantic plot features Cora and Hawkeye falling in love with each other, rather than Alice and Major Heyward. (Hawkeye has no romantic role in the novel.) In the novel, Alice attracts the attention of Major Heyward, which is transferred to Cora in the movie; conversely, Magua in the novel shows an interest in Cora, which is transferred to Alice in the movie. Consequently, other changes included Alice and Uncas playing out the roles that Uncas shared with Cora in the novel—with Alice, prisoner of Magua, dying in response to Uncas' death, and Cora surviving along with Hawkeye. Magua was killed by Chingachgook, not Hawkeye, and the characters of Colonel Munro and David Gamut largely removed from the main storyline. (Colonel Munro appears briefly; David was cut entirely.) The film also had considerably more focus on the romantic relationship (of Cora and Hawkeye), than the novel, which was mostly action-based.Trivia
- The character of Hawkeye was renamed Nathanial Poe in the film since producers thought they might get laughter from audiences from the name Cooper gave him - Natty Bumppo.
See also
External links
- [On the Trail of The Last of the Mohicans]
- [Roger Ebert's review]
- [Rita Kempley's review]
- [Desson Howe's review]
- [Entertainment Weekly profile]
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