15 Best Films Of 2016 (So Far)

From its inception, The Revenant has been overshadowed by discussion almost separate to the film. Its shoot was an Apocalypse Now-level hell, the pre-release dominated by rape jokes being taken seriously and the Oscar-road was peppered with moans about Leonardo DiCaprio’s approach to acting. But all that should be put aside, because taken as pure cinema The Revenant is simply excellent.

Regardless of your thoughts on the method, in the movie itself Oscar-winning Leo gives a great performance - all torture, both physical and internal - although The Revenant is far from just an actor’s film. Inarritu laboriously crafts a chilling recreation of nature, with everything so astutely observed, from the way the all naturalistic lighting explodes Emmanuelle Lubeski's detail-obsessed cinematography to the sound of feet crunching on the snow.

But it's not even just an filmmaking craft lesson either. The pain of DiCaprio's Hugh Glass and the unrelenting, vast world he crawls through all serve to highlight the bigger themes of life, death and (as the title suggests) returning.

Whether the film becomes regarded as a modern classic, an artwork to be watched and immersed in, and not just one with a troubled shoot and extreme method acting remains to be seen, but it really should be.

For more on The Revenant, check out Leonardo DiCaprio Isn't Even The Best Thing In The Revenant.