- Director: Kristian Levring
- Writer: Kristian Levring & Anders Thomas Jensen
- Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Eva Green. See full cast members here.
- Genre: Western, Action
- Rating: Western style gun fights. Contains violence but no gore. Some making out scenes.
SYNOPSIS:
Jon Jensen (Mads Nikkelsen) is a Danish soldier who seeks salvation in America. After seven years peacefully settling in an American town with his brother, he is finally be able to bring his wife and son to live with him. However, a gang of outlaws unleashes unspeakable terror upon his town and family, forcing Jon to avenge his family's death, alone.
This movie is a western directed by a Danish director, Kristian Levring, and the main character is played by a Danish, Mads Mikkelsen. A Danish western? Hmmm... As odd as it may sound, Salvation is actually a good, dark western movie. I honestly love it.
In terms of story, it is quite straightforward and typical of a western. You kill my family, I kill you and your gang. But what makes this movie interesting is the characters and the awesome performance of people who play them.
Take the main character, Jon Jensen, for instance. His face is so awesomely scary to look at but he is very caring about his family and you just can tell that he doesn't want any trouble. Only when things get ugly, he starts showing his violent side and kicks everybody's ass. Truthfully, Mads Nikkelsen is awesome in his role as he is able to create tension and suspense through his character. Besides that, Eva Green also delivers a stunning performance as Madelaine the mute 'princess'. She's so mysterious and fierce that even without saying a single line, she manages to captivate me with her role. Jon's brother, Peter Jensen (Mikael Persbrandt) is also amusing and badass.
Apart from the characters and casts, this movie is also dynamite because of the beautiful cinematography. It is beautifully shot and I can feel the essence of a western movie in it. Despite being Danish, Kristian Levring surely knows what he is doing.
All in all, despite the cliched story line, Salvation is a good and entertaining (Danish) western because of the awesome performance of the casts and the beautiful camera work and edit.
4 out of 5 stars.
P/S: It is so strange to see Eric Cantona in this :-D