Seraphim Falls

As a piece of filmmaking, there is nothing wrong with 'Seraphim Falls'. It is an old-fashioned western, slightly bloodier than most, but old-fashioned, and in the best way. The cast are uniformly fine, with Brosnan and Neeson excelling in thei hunter/hunted roles. The traditional mirroring of each is expertly handled and the simple chase plotline a great opportunity to run over the genre's standard tropes (pilgrims, wagon trains, railroad building, etc). It looks well and sounds appropriate, with an old-style Hollywood score by Gregson Williams. In the gore and amorality, it takes into account the revisionism popular since 'Unforgiven', and the only real Indian to make an appearance - for in such a catch-all movie they must - is a savvy water seller played by everyone's favourite, Wes Studi.

 

So what's the hitch? Well, given all the box ticking that's going on, it is probably inevitable that it feels like we've seen it all before. And we have. From the 'Jeremiah Johnson' opening scenes to 'The Outlaw, Josey Wales' motivation for the whole cat and mouse chase. There is sadly nothing original here, even down to the echo of Von Stroheim's 'Greed' at the end. In truth though, the storyline is probably far too simple to support the film's fine aspirations. It shows how a tragedy can live on long after the event and drag in far more people than the original protagonists, but given the ending, it is ironic just how much mayhem has been inflicted on everyone but the protagonists. In the end the simplicity and familiarity of the tale stops 'Seraphim Falls' from being the classic it aspires to be. It is tremendous entertainment, and a welcome - successful - new addition to the Western genre, but unfortunately far less than the sum of its mostly fine parts.