David Von Ancken's Seraphim Falls is Liam Neeson and Pierce Brosnan at their grizzled, violent, moody best, in a phenomenal western that went inexplicably overlooked back in 2006. Von Ancken is also the creator of AMC'S Hell On Wheels, and I strongly believe this is the film that set that idea in motion, a prequel even. Hell, Tom Noonan even shows up as the same preacher he went on to play in the show. Brosnan plays Gideon, an ex civil war soldier running for his life through a vast, unforgiving terrain. Pursuing him like the devil is Neeson as Carver, another ex soldier with one big bone to pick. The reasons for this relentless pursuit slowly become clear, as the lines between antagonist and protagonist blur into simply two humans who both made mistakes, and are paying dearly. Brosnan is a haunted shell of a man, emotionally torn to shreds and stripped of everything but a devil may care, bone and blood survival instinct. He has a few scenes that are his best work I've ever seen (this and Evelyn are his two top roles). Neeson outwardly locks in on a stony, determine calm, that only suggests the tormented typhoon raging beneath, his character using his bloody quest as some kind of solace, not knowing that's the last place it will lead. Seeing these two bosses of cinema go up against each other, in a western no less, is an enormous treat. The violence and fight scenes are bloody, visceral cascade of desperation and white knuckle fury, staged very realistically and really, really gory. Trust me this one earns the hell out of its R rating. The locations are just breathtaking, beginning in a snow dusted mountain peak, and descending through gorgeous pastures, rustic ranches, a railroad in construction, and finally a scorching desert, symbolizing the men's metamorphosis from cold seething hatred into hot blooded, sweaty emotion as the revelation at the end of the road draws near in a final confrontation of startling surprises and soul stinging emotion. The supporting cast is dotted with perfect talent, with committed work from Michael Wincott, Anjelica Huston, Kevin J. O Connor, Ed Lauter, Tom Noonan, Angie Harmon, Wes Studi and Xander Berkeley. If you enjoy intense, beautiful westerns and the work of these two genre titans, definitely check this out.
Review of Seraphim Falls
