The Last Rifleman (2023) saw its premiere at this year’s Belfast Film Festival. Partly filmed in the Northern Irish capital, the feature is a love letter to war veterans–honouring their sacrifices and marking the significance of D-Day.The Last Rifleman weaves a tale of regret and determination that not only plagues those who have gone to war. It’s a lovely tribute full of tear-jerking moments and endearing characters. The sold-out screening at Belfast Cineworld was almost like a full-circle moment for the cast, crew, and the stories that inspired the production.
★★★★✰
Written by Kevin Fitzpatrick, directed by Terry Loane, and inspired by the story of Bernard Jordan–an old war veteran who escaped his nursing home to traverse to France for the 75th anniversary of D-Day–The Last Rifleman stars Pierce Brosnan, caked in make-up and prosthetics to give the appearance of a 92-year-old man riddled with ailments. Still, that’s not going to stop old Artie Crawford. As he makes his way out into the world in hopes of reaching France, he meets a lot of different people along the way who help him on his quest.
While it’s not the film’s main focus, the emotional core of Artie’s misadventure is the love triangle that existed between himself, Maggie and Charlie. In this sense, there are some similarities between the love triangle hook of The Last Rifleman and Michael Morpurgo’s Private Peaceful (2012). It ensures a universal understanding of the feature beyond war and trauma–something more tangible for everyone. It’s human mortality and living with no regrets, played out in the relationships between the three characters which transcends the years following the Second World War. Through his travels, Artie wants to say one last goodbye to his best friend–and he can only do that in France.
That’s not the only emotional beat The Last Rifleman explores. It’s also the people Artie meets that truly carries the essence of the film: from a lad with classical taste in music; a French single mom wrangling two kids; to a German war veteran whom he has some sort of a heart-to-heart with, Artie may be by himself, but he is never truly alone. Each character has their own story to tell. They’re all so charming and diverse in personality, purpose, and nationality. The actors firmly assert their presence in the film, despite the very short screen time provided for them.
These characters all signify how far Artie is from reaching his final destination; they only show up for part of Artie’s travels. Once Artie says goodbye, it’s the last the audience will see of them. It’s this lesson of how people in life can come and go, staying for a short while and yet making a big impact. That’s truly the most endearing part of the film. The audience will surely miss these characters no matter how short their screen time is. Of course, not every character Artie meets has pure intentions. For example, there’s Tom, a lively resident at Artie’s nursing home who’s all about fame and glory.
Most of the film’s comedy stems from his shenanigans at the nursing home, spliced between Artie’s travels. It’s refreshing to say the least. His sequences are well-placed, giving the audience a break from the heavier topics and barrage of emotions. As the rest of the world awes and follows Artie’s journey, Tom leaks Artie’s escape to the press, hoping for some TV time for himself. While his actions are questionable and his motives are selfish, he unintentionally helps Artie in the long run. The Last Rifleman excels in surrounding its main character with supporting characters whose stories contribute to his overall journey, while still standing as individual stories of their own.
There’s also a lot of self-actualization present in The Last Rifleman’s visual storytelling. This is specifically prominent in the use of windows and reflections through transparent surfaces. This has several layers of meaning attached to it. Firstly, as Artie moves from each vehicle and mode of transportation, one thing remains the same for all of them: these are the windows looking out into the world he’s leaving behind. While there’s no deep focus on the Irish sights and scenes he passes, these glimpses into the outside are again more markers for Artie’s journey. Then there’s the actual reflection. As Artie continually relives his days at war, the reflections Artie sees on these surfaces are symbolic of the boy he once was, and the person he left behind on that battlefield.
The Last Rifleman has a heavy emphasis on the soldiers having been just boys at the time of war. It’s a running theme in the film: Artie’s age; the then and the now; the idea of boys who didn’t know any better and were just following orders. The audience can see this through the flashbacks, and even Artie’s interactions with the young men he comes across on his journey. But this theme is particularly pertinent in Artie’s conversations with Friedrich Mueller, a German veteran, and then again later, with Lincoln Adams, a US veteran played by John Amos.
Both discussions touch on their time at the war and their achievements. But both are also overshadowed by their youth and their then-ignorance of what the war meant in the grand scheme of things. When Artie stares out of the windows–his reflection visible–it contrasts who he was as a young boy and the man he is now, knowing what all the fighting back then truly meant. Besides these stylistic choices in the visuals, there is little that makes the film stand out production-wise, rendering many scenes somewhat bland compared to the action sequences.
The Verdict
Artie may have been the star, but every character shines in The Last Rifleman. Because the feature does not linger too long on each person aside from Artie, it gives the audience a chance to miss them, appreciate them, and truly feel the impact of their presence on Artie’s journey. An emotional adventure, The Last Rifleman is an astounding tearjerker of a film.
Words by Mae Trumata
Support The Indiependent
We’re trying to raise £200 a month to help cover our operational costs. This includes our ‘Writer of the Month’ awards, where we recognise the amazing work produced by our contributor team. If you’ve enjoyed reading our site, we’d really appreciate it if you could donate to The Indiependent. Whether you can give £1 or £10, you’d be making a huge difference to our small team.