OCR Text |
Show ARTS&ENTERTAINMENT Page 4 Angel breakdown •:.•••::•.:•£> •••. • : ' : v > e C 2 a i ARTS Superb acting and excellent writing make 'Seraphim Falls' an otherworldly movie experience Aaron Allen The Daily Utah Chronicle. Across the untamed wilderness of 19th-century America, one man runs while another man pursues in David Von Ancken's blisteringly savage Western, "Seraphim Falls." Colonel Gideon (Pierce Brosnan) seeks asylum from the demons in his mind and the revenge-seeking Colonel Carver (Liam Neeson), whose shadowy daguerreotype is probably next to the word "dogged" in some dusty edition of Webster's Dictionary. These two men, highranking officers on opposing sides of the Civil War, have seen and done things that make them question their faith in humanity. Both men move toward the same destiny on the sun-cracked desert of their souls. In a bold stroke of storytelling, we don't discover until late in the movie what Gideon did to deserve Carver's antagonism—a risky move considering that both men are brutal, savvy survivalists, capable of acts of kindness and mercy immediately followed by acts of vicious cruelty. We're forced to draw our own conclusions about these men based on their actions, which is frustrating sometimes because of their conflicting and enigmatic traits—not to mention their monosyllabic manners. But it's an approach that pays off brilliantly, creating two complex characters portrayed by two complex actors at the top of their games. Carver and his grumbling gang of bounty hunters (Michael Wincott, Ed Lauter, John Robinson and Robert Baker) track Gideon from the celestial heights of the snowy Rocky Mountains to the throatchoking hellishness of the Nevada desert, each step of the way hauntingly photographed by Academy Award-winning cinematographer John Toll ("Legends of the Fall" and "Braveheart"). Gideon never gets more than a moment to warm his hands or catch some Zs. Brosnan is excellent in the role—I especially liked an early scene in the mountains in which "Seraphim Falls" Samuel Goldwyn Films Directed by David Von Ancken Written by David Von Ancken and Abby Everett Jacques Starring: Liam Neeson, Pierce Brosnan, Michael Wincotr, Ed Lauter, John Robinson, Robert Baker, Xander Berkely and Anjelica Huston Rated R/115 minutes Opened March 2,2007 Three-and-a-half out of four stars •••* Monday, March 5 Corfcerts Todd Snider $12 in advance/ $15 at the door 9 p.m. Club Suede (1612 Ute Blvd. Park City) Wind Ensemble $3 to $7 7:30 p.m. Libby Gardner Concert Hall > What: Snow Patrol Magna) •- .*. - • ' Regardless of Ihe nit , you're trying to create in yoyr home, yoiill find the perfect colws at Ace. from dean aisp whites to rich fobuit deep tones, you'ie £;';£•; certain ro find jusuheriyht Colors for Your Ufa. }-, ,' Your Personality. 4th South ME Hardware 612 East 400 South Salt Lake City, UT 84102 Phone (801) 364 6567 Store Hours Mon-Sat 8anv9pm Sunday 10am-6pm •-•;• ' >'When:Todayat7p,m. v ; - j > How much: $30 in advance/ :\ $33 at the door ; v ..-;••; | "I'll slit him like an envelope, I will. And I'm dirty. If he doesn't die of blood loss, he'll probably get Clostridium. That'll teach 'em." Pierce Brosnan muses about evil in "Seraphim Falls." he convincingly shivers, shudders and gasps while removing a bullet from his arm with a knife that Rambo would be jealous Gideon also wins the award for most surprising (-and disgusting) use of a dead horse. In the more complicated of the two roles, Neeson is quietly menacing as Carver. His character takes on increasingly tragic dimensions the more we learn about him. Carver is more pitiful than he is bad, and Neeson never overplays him. Ancken, on the oth- its borrowed sounds but nod and sway to Cheri Magill (Wal-Mart country and Cheri's sultry vocals Chasing Yesterday Christian pop), and the when I wasn't concenCheri Magill switcheroo would be trating on criticizing. Publishing seamless, indecipherLike the hypnotizing efTwo out of able and without exagfects of hip-hop, Cheri five stars geration. I and her band are able • • In other words, Chas— to dull the perspectives ing Yesterday is so muand cause a drift into table that if the famed Mr. Potato tenderhearted and encouraging Head were to serve as a simile, landscapes where anyone can feel his parts could be arranged any safe and comfortable. which way and he would still look Had I listened to Chasing Yesterthe same, no matter the combina- day at a more impressionable and tion. Cyndi Lauper's "Time After tender age— say, 9 years old—I Time" is even covered on this al- may have been convinced that bum without any deviation from what I was hearing was enough to the original. make me smile and keep me smilSterility aside, I couldn't' help ing. But I'm not 9 years old, and »rs for Your Life 'i > W h e r e : T h e G r e a t Saltair <:A ( 1 2 4 0 8 W. Salt Air Drive, • ;.•] er hand, overplays the visual metaphors occasionally. The introduction of hallucinated characters as the mental states of Gideon and Carver break down is clumsy. But I did like how the setting moves from the mountains to the desert, charting the fall of these two formerly good men—these "seraphs"— from highest highs to lowest lows. "Nobody can protect no one," Carver says to -a frightened girl at one point. After what he and Gideon have been through, it's hard to disagree. a.allen@ chronicle.utah.edu Cheri MagilFs Chasing Yesterday plays it too safe Chasing Yesterday straddles the indispensable emotional themes of country and the high timbre, surface-play of pop. Although Cheri Magill sings with positive ambition sustained on vibrato, her band Tilt-A-Whirls in the background, making for an easy, spinning ride in the children's section of any amusement park. The band is exceptionally safe: It stays consistent with all the notes, melodies and structures one would normally come to expect in the genres of country and pop. There is so little movement from these traditional forms that the band and Cheri's vocals could be swapped and pasted in pastiche among Monday, March 5,2007 I'm not as nai've as I once was. I thus find it hard to keep listening to these tracks while typing a review. I'm through. Spencer Young Snow Patrol to take Saltair by storm If you haven't heard of the alternative-rock band Snow Patrol, it doesn't necessarily mean you've been living under a rock. It is evidence, however, that there are major disconnections within your music circuit. Snow Patrol's low-key, indierock sensibilities have spread beyond college campuses to the mainstream. The band has played with some of rock's choice powerhouses—such as U2—and will play at the 2007 V Festival with the The Killers and Foo Fighters. Luckily for us,- Snow Patrol has set out to astonish Utah fans at The Great Saltair tonight. After . releasing such "hits as "Run," "Grazed Knees" and "Chocolate," the band is here to promote its latest album, Eyes Open. Somber singles such as "Open Your Eyes," "Chasing Cars" and "Hands Open" have given the band national radio airthne and several TV and film soundtrack appearances. Big and small screen heavy-hitters such as "Grey's Anatomy," "The O.C.," "House," "E.R.," "One Tree Hill," "Garden State" and "The Last Kiss" have all sampled Snow Patrol music. The songs are gracious, sincere and well crafted. They have a down-to-earth, homey vibe that doesn't seem overproduced. On the band's Web site, lead singer Gary Lightbody wrote that the band is not seeking overbearing popularity. "There are swaggering bands, bands who are in your face. And then there are bands who get hold of you somewhere else. I think it's a heart thing, an intimacy thing. Like you know them and they know you. I think we are one of those bands." Jrinny Glines BE THERE WHEN THE RED ROCKS ROCK THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS! Get your student tickets now for the April event. Utah is hosting the NCAA Gymnastics Championships April 26-28 in the Huntsman Center and The MUSS wants you there. We've reserved a block of student tickets for the event. The price is $12 for the upper bowl, and $30 for the reserved lower bowl. That includes all four sessions: April 26 Team Competition (two sessions), April 27 Super 6 Finals, and April 28 Individual Championships. Go online to www.alumni.utah.edu and get your | tickets now while they last (all U students can buy tickets). Then, let's give the Red Rocks the ultimate home court advantage for the NCAAs. |