Seraphim Falls - Preview
Preview by Jack Foley
AS DANIEL Craig settles into James Bond’s tuxedo, former 007 star Pierce Brosnan has been continuing to extend his range and distance himself from the spy franchise.
His latest, Seraphim Falls pits him alongside Liam Neeson in an epic action thriller set against the backdrop of the American Civil War.
Directed by David Von Ancken (The Shield, CSI) the film is described as “a visceral study of revenge and a bloody account of the aftermath of war”.
It’s said to combine the raw brutality of First Blood with the savage beauty of Cold Mountain and is determined to leave audiences on the edge of their seats.
Five years after the end of the Civil War a lone figure – Gideon (Brosnan) is sitting in front of a fire when he is pulled out of his reverie by the echo of a Henry rifle and a bullet puffing into the snow inches from his head.
A second bullet hits Gideon’s shoulder and fearing for his life, he runs for cover in some nearby fir trees, while his blood leaves a crimson trail in the snow…
So begins the thrilling first act of the film – and the final stage of Colonel Morsman Carver’s (Neeson) terrible revenge – to hunt down and kill Gideon.
The ensuing manhunt leaves many men dead and will ultimately force Carver to fully comprehend the full cost of his undertaking.
Brosnan has said in interviews that he has always wanted to do a Western and hope that Seraphim Falls will be a worthy addition to the genre.
“When I left and went to London, Clint Eastwood came into my life with all of the great films that he made, and then of course I got my education in cinema and John Ford,” he has been quoted as saying. “The Irish are very much steeped in the cowboy genre, and historically of course we have the great rift of the civil war.”
Early word from American critics suggests they’ve not been that impressed, however.
Variety wrote that “aside from spasms of brutal violence, however, there’s nothing rousing or new here”, while the Hollywood Reporter declared: “It’s all very impressive looking, but this Civil War-era Western moves at a painstaking trickle.”
And Box Office Mgaazine was also negative, noting that “Seraphim Falls is a sanctimoniously violent western about retribution and forgiveness with obvious Biblical overtones, references and names”.
We’re still interested though. The film opens in the UK later this year.