The Last Trapper (2004)

Absolutely the worst movie.

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I agree this film is worth viewing for the gorgeous images of nature. However, there are several aspects that make me wonder.How can it happen that the trapper never meets any First Nations people, in particular Northern Athabaskan people, apart from his wife? If that is merely due to low population density, how can it happen that he never thinks or speaks about them, in particular considering how much he's worried about the role of man as part of nature, as a respectful partner of nature, and the danger that man might stop playing that role? There are many First Nations in North America striving hard to live a lifestyle respectful of nature, and they are far from giving up on it, even though their Nations have been under dire pressure from European-style civilization for generations. As opposed to our two trappers in the film, there are many young people among them; actually, First Nations populations in North America tend to be growing today.I can't understand why the film-makers chose to keep that topic dead quiet, in particular considering that more than one First Nation is mentioned during the end credits of the film, so it does appear they used indigenous knowledge and help in making the film. It seems disrespectful to me, and filled with bitter irony, to make a film claiming that nature needs man for its equilibrium, and then represent man as a white trapper, not once mentioning First Nations... Certainly not all white people are evil, and First Nations are not simply "noble savages", but the general tendency is that white hunters have not been all that helpful to the equilibrium of nature in North America, and First Nations have greatly suffered from it. A white trapper using First Nations for nothing except getting a much younger wife to serve him is even worse than the average racist cliché...Besides, i have to support the observation by hsilberstein-1 that the behavior of the trapper makes you wonder. I admit i lived in cities all my life, so i may not be very qualified to judge back-country survival skills, but i have done a lot of alpine mountaineering in my life and i have done a number of multi-day hikes in the outback in Canada, in bear country, some of them solo. In addition to the dubious scenes listed by hsilberstein-1, there are several more where he behaves in ways that even i, with my limited experience, can easily recognize as needlessly asking for trouble. Among the worst is his encounter with the adult brown bear. He surprises a huge Grizzly at close range, and the animal is obviously deeply scared by the man: It gets up on its hind legs and bares his fangs, which a Grizzly usually only does when feeling threatened. What does the trapper do? He utters no word. In such a situation, it is imperative to start speaking (no matter what) in a low, monotonous voice, like when consoling a child. He does not move at all. In such a situation, it is imperative to slowly back away (without turning around and without stumbling). He does not slowly raise his arms to appear larger. He does not pick up his dog, thus risking that it might run away or that it might even make a rush at the bear, or that the bear might choose to try and catch it. Instead, he challenges the already upset bear by staring at him for a considerable time, right into his eyes. He is indeed lucky to get away with that absurd, almost suicidal behavior. Kudos to that bear for keeping his cold blood anyway and doing the reasonable thing, just leaving the scene all the same. Given numerous instances of such strange behavior, i doubt this film has much merit as a documentary.

I didn't know how to rate this film since the photography, landscapes, animals etc... were fabulous. However, the storyline was a pretty flat. The premise that trappers are needed to keep nature in balance is absurd. Nature does that all by itself without human intervention. It also bugged me that the trapper kept getting his dogs in deadly situations. I wondered how many sled dogs were actually injured in the making of this film.I really liked the trapper's native wife and wish she had a bigger role in the film. She was a very interesting character, but she basically just step and fetched for the trapper all day long. The trapper had a gorgeous canoe, and great dogs too.The film is basically about a bunch of old guys who don't want to leave the wilderness. However, judging by all the trouble they get into, I think it is high time they move to a retirement community with safe activities overlooking the mountains!

I stumbled upon this film one Friday evening zapping the channels on my sat-box, and it caught my eye. Figured it was kind of a documentary, and with "nothing better to do" in mind, I thought I would give it a try.Some hour and a half later I sit in front of my TV, and don't regret my decision one bit. I feel many of todays films are so full of, pardon the expression, cr*p, but this film really gave me an enjoyable time, and such a peaceful feeling. Almost to the point I wanted to get my boots on and take a hike in the woods to get "closer to nature" :-)I can highly recommend this film, especially for those who love nature as something more than a trip to the zoo or a hike through the city park.

I have been invited to the "premiere" of Le Dernier Trappeur in Brussels, Belgium, as I happen to know the executive producer of this movie ... Director Nicolas Vanier has been interviewed in front of the room, mainly explaining the problems they had with the cold temperature there, they had to shoot with -50°C sometimes (*EDIT* : -58°F, sorry for bad conversion)! I tried to view the movie as objectively as possible, and honestly I haven't been disappointed.This movie is a documentary, you have to know that. People in there "act", but terribly as they are *not* actors. Norman Winther -Northman Winter would have been more appropriate ;)- is a trapper, in the deep Yukon in Canada, and you as a spectator learn to know his tough life.Wonderful landscapes, incredible views of that part of our earth I didn't know could be so beautiful, are in themselves entirely making the movie worthy. There is a message too : "in those northern lands, what man does, hunting, is a necessity : he takes samples, but doesn't ruin the nature. Without him, some species will swarm, other will disappear". I suppose it isn't 100% true, but hey the movie is supported by the WWF so I guess even if they try to justify the hunting, this cannot be so bad :)One negative point though : you'll have some repetition, in the succession of scenes as well as in music, even if that one is very nice.A great documentary, two thumbs up !