Seraphim Falls: Brosnan and Leeson Give Good Film

Seraphim Falls is a surprise because you don't have to like Westerns to enjoy it. Pierce Brosnan plays against type as a hunted trapper pursued through the woods by a party of men out to get him. Liam Neeson is the man leading the hunting party, and has a cold set of reasons for doing so.

Pierce Brosnan is Gideon, a skilled man who leads a lonely existence. Liam Neeson is Carver, a grim survivor who has a mighty grudge against Gideon. The horses whinny in their saddles and the wild elements combine to give a turrible skeer.

Seraphim Falls starts out with the attack of the lone man high in the woods above a desolate mountain range. Not since Brokeback Mountain has there been such beautiful scenery, untouched by modern telephone lines or commercial camera shots. The setup is fast. Why do the men attack him? Why does he run?

Seraphim Falls follows the character of Gideon(Brosnan), who is shot in the shoulder and starts running through the alpine forest shivering in the snow. His horse is left behind and he gets thrown into a freezing river. Five men on horseback in warm furs track him. His skills, we discover, are equal to theirs.

But the lone trapper is a wily fox. He know the ways of the woods well and soon the men start to diminish in number. The snow gives way to a interview with a lone family on the high woods prairie, and what happens there. They are victim's to the deceiving peace of the high prairie.

Seraphim Falls shows how life was lived shortly after the American Civil War. Postwar strife lives anew in the West where men with short tempers and long memories trail on. The burning prairie is beautiful as long as your horse runs good and there's fresh water and food to fuel these long sojourns. Strangers meet and trade suspicious words.

Men had to watch what they said, women had little power in the home and nowhere else, except to sell their body. The school of experience ruled all. Desperadoes, outlaws, wagon trains, Indians, and strangers might meet you on your way to and from a desolate errand or running from a mob who wanted your blood. Blistering sun and extreme of cold and wind trapped you outside the protection of a town.