Last Samurai (The) (2003)

Did this movie come out before Tom Cruise went wacko? Call this one Dances with Swords. It stands on its own as a story of a U.S. warrior's journey from one hypocrisy to another -- from the slaughter of the Native Americans to the Wild West circus pageants of the late 1800s. He then finds his way to Japan as a military trainer, where he becomes impressed with the warrior spirit and discipline of the dying Samurai way of life. The training and combat scenes and the kinship that Cruise's character feels with the betrayed Samurai are well worth watching. Four stars.