The Last Samurai

The Story of Nathan Algren

• Nathan Algren, a former US Army Captain, is a skilled soldier who has become a bitter alcoholic traumatized by the atrocities he committed and witnessed during the American Indian Wars.
• He is approached by his former commanding officer Colonel Bagley to train the newly created Imperial Japanese Army for a Japanese businessman, Omura.
• Algren takes the job for the money and is accompanied to Japan by his old friend, Sergeant Zebulon Gant.

The Imperial Japanese Army and the Samurai

• The imperial soldiers are simply conscripted peasants with shoddy training and little discipline.
• Algren meets Simon Graham, a British translator knowledgeable about the samurai, and learns about the samurai's rebellion against Japan's new emperor.
• Katsumoto, the samurai leader, spares Algren's life and takes him prisoner after a battle.

Algren's Transformation

• Algren is taken in by Taka, Katsumoto's sister and the widow of a samurai killed by Algren, and learns the Japanese language and culture.
• He overcomes his alcoholism and guilt, and is trained in the art of kenjutsu.
• Algren develops sympathy for the samurai, who are upset that the pace of modern technology has eroded the traditions of their society.

The Confrontation

• Omura orders Katsumoto's arrest for carrying a sword in public and tells him to perform seppuku the next day to redeem his honor.
• Algren refuses Bagley's offer to resume command of the army and joins Katsumoto's men to free their leader.
• During the rescue, Katsumoto's son Nobutada is mortally wounded.

The Final Battle

• The samurai use the Imperial Army's overconfidence to lure them into a trap, inflicting massive casualties on both sides.
• Katsumoto orders a suicidal cavalry charge on horseback, and the samurai withstand an artillery barrage and break through Bagley's line.
• Algren kills Bagley, but the samurai are quickly mowed down by Gatling guns.
• Katsumoto, mortally wounded, commits seppuku with Algren's help as the soldiers kneel in respect.