About Slow West

"Slow West" is a 2015 action western film written and directed by John Maclean in his directorial debut. The story follows 16-year-old Jay Cavendish (Kodi Smit-McPhee) who journeys across the American frontier in search of the woman he loves, Rose Ross (Caren Pistorius), and is joined by a mysterious traveler named Silas (Michael Fassbender), who protects him from the dangers of the wild west.

Making / Production

The film was produced by Iain Canning, Rachel Gardner, Conor McCaughan, and Emile Sherman, and filmed mainly in New Zealand and Scotland. It was a creative cooperation between the UK, New Zealand, and the USA, showcasing the international range of the Western genre.

Actors

• Kodi Smit-McPhee as Jay Cavendish. Smit-McPhee brings a gainly innocence and romanticism to the screen, portraying Jay's single-minded obsession to find his love with a sweet fervor.
• Michael Fassbender as Silas. Fassbender's performance brings wisps of dark humor and turbulent depth to the hardened outlaw, providing a unique edge to the classic gunslinger trope.
• Caren Pistorius as Rose Ross. Pistorius presents a salt-of-the-earth strength and practicality, serving as the pragmatic balance to Jay's idealized dream of love.

Trivia / Interesting Facts

• The film marks the directorial debut of Scottish musician and member of the band The Beta Band, John Maclean.
• Although the film is set in Colorado and the American West, it was filmed in New Zealand and Scotland.
• "Slow West" won the World Cinema Jury Prize at Sundance Film Festival.

Awards

"Slow West" was well-appreciated by the critics and was awarded the prestigious World Cinema Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in 2015.

Quotes

• "There's more to life than surviving." - Silas
• "Ain't nothing slow about the west." - Payne
• "The west was won by the survivors." - Silas

Music, Soundtrack

• The film's atmospheric soundtrack was composed by Jed Kurzel, known for his work in "Macbeth" and "Assassin's Creed".
• "Orion's Belt", "Jay's Theme", and "Let's Drift" are some of the notable tracks from the film's score, offering a beautiful ethereal quality to the western landscape.