Review of Seraphim Falls (2007) by Harry G — 06 Feb 2015

Written and directed by David Von Ancken (TV's Oz, Without a Trace and The Vampire Diaries), and funded by Mel Gibson. This revisionist western is a sparse and it's main focus is an old fashioned game of cat and mouse.

It's the sort of film that wouldn't have looked out of place as a spaghetti western, but for a low budget film, it's professionally made and has two strong and compelling leads. Set sometime after the American Civil War in 1868, it has the mysterious Gideon (Pierce Brosnan), on the run from a posse led by former Confederate officer Colonel Morsman Carver (Liam Neeson), who is travelling with Pope (Robert Baker), Hayes (Michael Wincott), Parsons (Ed Lauter) and the Kid (John Robinson).

They're all trying to capture Gideon as part of a bounty operation. However, Gideon proves to be a hard man to try and find, and he's a man who's not going to give in without a fight, and he uses the land and hostile terrain as his battlefield, using what he can to stand up to Carver and his men, but Carver knows Gideon all too well.

It's a dark and brooding western, it does sag a bit in the middle, but the opening chase in the snowy wilderness and mountains is very suspenseful. It also benefits from some lavish yet focused camerawork by John Toll (Braveheart (1995).

But, it has some very good performances from Neeson and Brosnan.