Review of Seraphim Falls (2007) by Eduardo C — 04 Oct 2009

While superifically billed as a western, "Seraphim Falls" has the tone and structure of a mournful poem. On the surface it is little more than the story of a hunter, a former Civil War Colonel, and the hunted, a war criminal. As the film goes on, however, both men become so singlemindedly driven so as to be mirror images of eachother, in essence hunting and running away from nothing more and nothing less than themselves. The film's final act, featuring the appearance of a Mephistophelean temptress who offers both men what they need to kill the other while taking from them what they would need to survive, capitalizes on some of the more surreal touches from the first two acts and elevates the movie to another level.

While not without its flaws (Gideon is at times borderline precognitive in his ability to set traps and escape, the flashback to the incident at Seraphim Falls, which links the two men and started the chase, is underwhelming and could very easily have been left out), the film features two very strong lead performances, some interesting supporting turns and exquisitely beautiful photography. While hated by most, I really enjoyed it.