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DVD (12)
A Western short on dialogue and long on pomposity, is little more than an extended chase scene down a snow-filled mountaintop to a desert floor.
The technical revels are arresting, but Seraphim Falls is slow of motive and thin of plot -- a western that dies with its boots on.
Though the chase threatens to go on too long, the suspense remains high because we don't know which man is the real villain, or if there's a villain at all.
Seraphim Falls isn't completely without interest, particularly for those of us who still like Westerns and bemoan their demise almost as much as we bemoan the demise of the movie musical.
It is not a terrible movie -- its beginning holds a certain promise -- just, finally, an unengaging one.
The director, David Von Ancken, and his cinematographer, John Toll, do magical things with the ever-shifting light, and there are splendidly weird turns from Anjelica Huston as a snake-oil salesperson and Tom Noonan as a wagon-train Evangelist.
Finally recalls a less convincing version of those of Anthony Mann which managed realism and the mythic without a false note.
Rob Roy pursues James Bond in an old-fashioned Western that's cripplingly short on action.
Von Ancken at times brings his debut very close to something grand and memorable.
Messages, as Sam Goldwyn famously advised, are better left to Western Union.
As the story self-destructs, we are left with the majestic scenery, photographed by John Toll, and the pleasure of two good actors from one side of the Atlantic stretching themselves to seem convincing on the other.
A very impressive feature debut with this brutal western revenge thriller.
As Gideon misses chance after chance to break free from the posse on his tail, you just want Seraphim Falls to end.
The edgy pleasure is to be found in the sheer brutality of the chase and the bitter struggle to survive the elements.
It may be too ponderous for some, and an appearance by Anjelica Huston as a snake-oil peddler near the end is a touch too surreal, but if you're a fan of Westerns the way they used to make them, you'll be mesmerised.
An unconvincing attempt at an old-fashioned western, Seraphim Falls works best as a chase thriller but falls apart when it tries to harness the mythic power of the American frontier.
The chase is on in brooding western Seraphim Falls, with Liam Neeson gunning for Pierce Brosnan across snowy mountains, river rapids and blazing desert.
An unremarkable revenge/chase western, bolstered by its name cast, matter-of-fact violence and Toll's pristine photography. Eventually a little pretentious - with Anjelica Huston's cameo the nadir - but if you love oaters, it's just worth the time.
The overweight middle section is repetitive, contrived and, well, boring. But at least the views are spectacular and Brosnan, especially, is likeably quirky.
A revenge epic it may be, but a rip-roaring rampage it's not.
Great performances, splendid looks, but its grip slackens toward a rather fuzzy finale.
Enjoyable, frequently tense and superbly directed chase thriller with strong performances and spectacular photography throughout.
Those who say there's nothing left to be done with the genre hasn't seen this...
Cinematographer John Toll takes a page from John Ford's book and really elevates the land to where it has equal status to the characters.
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