The Time I Met
the Last Mohican

Daniel Day-Lewis is the greatest actor of our generation. Well, I say “our” generation, but I'm considerably younger than him. I may even be two generations younger, but I digress. Regardless of our ages, he was still working when I reached my 20s, and even then, he was still the finest actor around.

My personal favorite of his is The Last of the Mohicans. It's such an epic, historic war movie that keeps me on my toes every time I watch it. And what a performance! I still can't believe he didn't get an Oscar nomination for it, let alone win one.

Hawkeye was his best role ever. He may have been objectively better in There Will Be Blood or Lincoln, but I found him the most entertaining here. He's also the most heroic in the film, outrunning ambushes and defying the British officers who give the orders. He rarely does this kind of action in his later movies.

I also have to shout out the rest of the cast. They all did great, from Wes Studi's villainous Magua to Madeleine Stowe's Cora Munro. And you can't forget the late Russell Means, who played Chingachgook and delivered that iconic line at the end about being the last of the Mohicans. I get goosebumps every time!

I met much of the rest of the cast throughout the 2010s. They were all so nice, and always smiled when I showed them my movie poster. It seems they had good memories of making the film, too. Or because the film was a hit, they remember it fondly.

In any case, it was a great pleasure meeting Madeleine Stowe, Wes Studi, Eric Schweig, Steven Waddington, Terry Kinney, and director Michael Mann. But of course, the biggest honor was meeting Hawkeye himself: Daniel Day-Lewis.

I finally met him at the surprise screening of Lincoln at the 50th New York Film Festival at Alice Tully Hall on October 8, 2012. It was billed as a secret screening, and it was the film's first public showing. He stood right beside Steven Spielberg that night. I felt overwhelmed seeing two legends in person. Three, if you include Sally Field, which I did.

Anyway, contrary to how he seems in public—quiet, maybe a bit reserved—he was actually warm in person. He wasn't as jovial as the other cast members I met, but he was still lovely and happily signed my poster when I asked. I had braced myself for something much chillier.

He didn't even mind that I asked him to sign two posters that night. One was for The Last of the Mohicans, the same one the other cast members signed, and one was for Lincoln, which I also got Spielberg and Field to sign. I had to hold up both posters as he signed them, but I didn't care. I'd gladly do it again if it meant seeing him in person for a second time.

Though I also loved Lincoln, none can ever replace The Last of the Mohicans for me. It's simply his best film and his finest performance, and that's saying something for someone with such an excellent filmography. Actors wish they could have a resume as amazing as Daniel Day-Lewis's.