Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7426 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-12-24
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 115 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Out of nowhere, the Western seems to be enjoying its latest mini-resurgence. And while Seraphim Falls isn’t quite as high profile as the recent 3:10 To Yuma, it’s still a solidly made piece of cinema that’s well worth spending some time with.

It centres around the search for a man named Gideon, played by Pierce Brosnan, and the reasons for said search aren’t clear at the start of the film. But what is certain is that a small party is on his trail, led by Liam Neeson’s Morsman Carver, and that Carver is very determined to get his man. From this set up, Seraphim Falls slowly unfolds as an intelligent, ambiguous mish-mash of Western and thriller, and an intriguing one at that.

Seraphim Falls, it should be said, isn’t a ride without a few problems. The pacing isn’t consistent, for instance, and the back end of the film doesn’t make the most of the build up before it. But there’s still plenty in its corner. Its two star actors are in excellent form, with both Brosnan and Neeson revelling in the complexity of their respective characters, while some sequences are genuinely exciting too.

If Serphami Falls, though, fails to quite deliver what it hints it’s capable of, then it still leaves enough in place to enjoy. Refusing to dumb down its approach, it’s a grown-up, interesting movie, and one that’s easily possible to warm to in spite of the aforementioned problems. Roll on more Westerns, say we… --Jon Foster

Synopsis
It's three years after the Civil War, and Morsman Carver (Liam Neeson) is leading a small hired posse, including Pope (Robert Baker) and Parsons (Ed Lauter), to track down Gideon (Pierce Brosnan) through the snow-covered woods of the Ruby Mountains in New Mexico. While his posse is in it for the money, Carver appears to have more personal reasons for going after Gideon--and demanding that he be taken alive. But in David Von Ancken's exciting Western, the audience is kept in the dark for most of the movie as to just why Carver is so determined to hunt Gideon down and meet him face-to-face. In fact, the script, written by Von Ancken and Abby Everett Jacques, also keeps viewers guessing about which of them might be the hero and which the villain, blurring the distinction between good and evil. Gorgeously filmed by John Toll, SERAPHIM FALLS is a stunning film to look at, enhanced by Harry Gregson-Williams's beautiful score and the vast expanse of the wide-open locations. Mixing in elements of such classic Westerns as THE SEARCHERS and UNFORGIVEN (among other Clint Eastwood films) with such survival thrillers as FIRST BLOOD and THE NAKED PREY, television director Von Ancken (OZ, NUMB3RS, COLD CASE) makes a compelling feature-film debut. Neeson and Brosnan are both outstanding in their difficult, complex roles, particularly the latter as he takes on numerous physical challenges, and Oscar winner Anjelica Huston pops up in an unusual way, playing a mysterious woman who likes to make very interesting deals.

Customer Reviews

An unusual and satisfying western
Seraphim Falls almost makes it into the territory of the great westerns. It is well acted (I haven't seen Brosnan this good in anything), beautifully shot and moves along at a wonderfully measured pace. Essentially, this is picaresque journey through the west structured around a revenge narrative. Neeson is tracking Brosnan. As the chase goes on, both parties meet interesting characters. And then they eventually meet face to face.

The film has a grit and a reality at its core, but also is alive to the sheer strangeness and multiplicity of the frontier, and the ending I found genuinely surprising. The one bum note in the film is the Neeson character's backstory which is, after all, the engine driving the whole narrative. The loss of his family is certainly reason enough for his quest, but as depicted it lacks power and drama (see, perhaps, The Outlaw Josey Wales for much more effective presentation of similar dramatic material).

Highly recommended.

Suprised How Much I Liked This
I like Westerns but I gave this one a miss in the cinema as it had a lot of negative reviews. I'm now sorry I did as, whilst I can see that this film wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea, I absolutely loved it. It's a movie that's not afraid to take its time in unfolding the story. I think you've definitely got to be in the right mood to watch it. It's certainly not an all-action, pop corn type of film, although it has more action in it than I was lead to believe from certain reviews.

In my opinion, the main thing this film has going for it is atmosphere. The scenery is gorgeous and varies greatly throughout the whole picture. The acting from Brosnan and Neeson is top notch (Brosnan being particularly good).

As you've probably read elsewhere, the film has a ... 'different' sort of ending with supernatural/spiritual overtones. A lot of people seem to have had a problem with this but it didn't feel at all out of place to me.

But still, this does seem to be a film you love or hate. I loved it; I leant my copy to a friend who fell asleep half way through.

From hard and gritty to mythical and allegorical
A film of two halves, but with a somewhat uncomfortable join.
This movie starts off with one of the most gritty and riveting hunts in recent memory. Pierce Brosnan's weatherbeaten and hardened ex Union officer is the hunted one, and Liam Neeson is the hunter, driven remorselessly by the ghosts of his past. The cold of the mountains, the pain of using a knife to gouge out a bullet and cauterize the wound, the chill of the water, the close quarters kills with the knife, all make for a visceral start with minimal dialogue and little explanation. Each man is completely single minded - one on survival, and one on revenge. As the chase moves onto the plains, we discover more about their past and the reason for the chase, marking a change in tone of the movie. As the plains give way to the desert, the movie takes an altogether more mythical and almost surreal mood, which is sure to divide audiences. Those expecting an action packed climax to the chase may feel cheated, however what we do get is at the very least thought provoking and I think lingers in the memory much more than a conventional showdown would have.
The director borrows heavily from the greats - the revenge themes of many a spaghetti Western, with the repeated flashbacks revealing a little more each time we see them reminiscent of Leone, also Ford's `The Searchers', as well as the atmosphere of Eastwood's Westerns. Borrowed the styles may be, but they are put together with a unique voice and vision, albeit in a somewhat hollow way in which the director too often substitutes myth and images for true drama. But what startling images they are! The photography is beautiful, whether it is the stark beauty of the mountains and snow, or the green of the plains or the arid expanses of the desert, and the images of the men facing off, or Angelica Huston in the desert, will stick with you.
The musical score to the movie is surprisingly restrained, but is a perfect accompaniment to the story - at first minimalist and somber in minor keys, reflecting the movies tone of survival and single mindedness, then the score switches to something more traditional as it enters the plains and the sphere of a traditional Western, and finally becomes wistful and dreamlike in the final stages. It's imaginative and subtle, always in the background and never grabbing your attention, but adding immensely to the tone and feel of the movie, almost like another character.
It is the final third of the movie which feels just a little longer than it should, with some ideas dragged out, and with changes of tone which leave the viewer almost feeling like he is being asked to start a new movie. What helps keep the viewer hooked are the leads, who are terrific, the two Irishman fitting into a Western with great assurance. Brosnan in particular makes the most of a very physical role, with much more subtlety than we might expect. Otherwise, a strong supporting cast of character actors is great to watch but frankly is given little of substance to do.
This is a flawed film, to be sure - but nonetheless it achieves what great cinema is supposed to - it stirs the emotions, and makes you think. Recommended.