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A Slice of Life
by Francine Brokaw
Seraphim Falls
Pierce Brosnan plays a completely different character than what audiences are used to seeing him portray in this story set in the western mountains after the Civil War. For Brosnan it was a chance to get back on a horse, which is something he confides he loves but hasn’t done in a long time.
“I used to ride a lot and so I have always been fond of the horses. But needless to say I had not been up on a horse in about 10 years.” He enjoyed being back in the saddle. “The horses were magnificent and the cowboys were just the best. All the animals were well cared for and responsive. So once I was in the saddle and comfortable it was just like old times and of course the prairie out there is a great place to ride.”
The story opens with a bang – literally. Brosnan gets shot in the arm and for the rest of the hour and fifty-five minutes he is a hunted man, with Liam Neeson hot on his trail. Neeson begins with four hired men, but one by one they fall or desert and in the end it is just one man against the other.
The audience is kept in the dark as to which one is the good guy and which is the bad one. And, until the end, they don’t know why Neeson is set on killing Brosnan. The war has been over for three years, but something happened back then that has haunted both men - something that drives Neeson to put every bit of energy he has into hunting this man.
The cinematography is wonderful and the story is interesting (even if it is bloody and violent) – until the end. The last fifteen minutes are somewhat disconnected from the rest of the story and add a strange and seemingly mystic element to the plot, which detracts from the rest of the story.
“We started up in the snow,” Brosnan says, “and then down across the prairie and into the salt flats. It was bitter cold and in the opening sequence we go right into a waterfall when it was 37 degrees below. It was pretty intense!”
Liam Neeson added about the filming, “It [demanded] an amount of physical energy from the performers and I knew it was going to be a challenge – a lot of horse riding, running about and firing guns. It’s pretty physical stuff but I love doing that. It’s good to flex those physical muscles.”
And, Brosnan agrees that the shoot was demanding. “You just try not to whine about it…there’s always a good whiskey waiting at the other end, or maybe more than one whiskey,” he affirms, no doubt with a twinkle in his eye.
Seraphim Falls is rated "R" for violence and brief language. It runs 115 minutes. The entire film is intense, and not for youngsters or anyone who is squeamish.
© 2007 Francine Brokaw
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