'The Last Rifleman' Exclusive Interview: Pierce Brosnan

Moviefone speaks with Pierce Brosnan about 'The Last Rifleman'. "I wanted to be a part of it for the young men who went to war all those years back".

Pierce Brosnan in 'The Last Rifleman'. Photo: Sky Cinema.

Opening in theaters and available on VOD beginning November 8th is the new drama ‘The Last Rifleman’, which is based on a true story, and was directed by Terry Loane (‘Mickybo and Me’). The movie stars acclaimed actor Pierce Brosnan (‘GoldenEye’ and ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’), as well as Jürgen Prochnow (‘Beverly Hills Cop II’) and the late John Amos (‘Coming to America’).

Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Pierce Brosnan about his work on ‘The Last Rifleman’, his first reaction to the screenplay, the journey his character goes on and the people he meets along the way, working with the late John Amos, the guilt his character has over losing his wife and his best friend, playing a character in their nineties, and what Brosnan still wants to accomplish in his life before his time runs out.

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(L to R) Pierce Brosnan and Samuel Bottomley in 'The Last Rifleman'. Photo: Sky Cinema.

Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about your first reaction to the screenplay and why you wanted to be a part of this project?

Pierce Brosnan: I wanted to be a part of it for the memory of the men, the young men who went to war all those years back in time. I wanted to work with Terry Loane, who I've tried to work with before. I wanted to go back to Ireland to make this movie and be part of such a production and such a story, to capture something that had a poignancy and a memory of pain and suffering and a lament for the loss of life, loss to the barbarity of war and the barbarity of war that haunts a man and still lives with us today. I thought it was beautifully rendered and I thought it was even more poignant that it came from the essence of a story that had a truth to it.

MF: Can you talk about the journey that Artie goes on and the incredibly kind strangers that he meets along the way that help him on his journey?

PB: Well, I think the essence of his being is kindness, and I thought it was a wonderful road movie, and I was surrounded by such great performers. To go back to my homeland, to go back to Ireland, to discover a part of my homeland, the north of Ireland, which I fell in love with, the people, the landscape, they've had a deep poignancy for me.

John Amos in 'The West Wing'. Photo: Warner Bros. Television.

MF: You have a fantastic scene with the late actor John Amos. What was it like working with him and having him as a scene partner?

PB: Oh, John, I have the greatest love and fondness of memory for him. He is a man that I had seen over the years of being an actor myself and living in Los Angeles and coming to America in early 1982 and finding a life and a career, and discovering all these wonderful actors who have great stories of character. To be an entertainer, to be an actor, to be in the public eye, to be on the stage for so many years like John was, and then to sit in his company, along with his son, it had, again, a very meaningful memory for me. We got on famously. I also had my mother on the shoot with me and my wife, Keely. So, it was a joy to have my family with me and to share this charming road movie of a story. So, John was great. Lovely voice, lovely man, kindhearted, and a joy to be with.

MF: Can you talk about the love and guilt that Artie carries for both his late wife Maggie, and his friend Charlie, who was lost in WWII?

PB: Yes. Well, we do as humans carry so many regrets and misfortunes that some of us never heal from. Maggie suffers from dementia, which is such a cruel plight on our humanity. They had such a love, and the torment and the pain and the sacrifice of war, and that moment of hesitation and the battle in the fury of war where you freeze, and you must suffer with the consequences of your fear and not moving forward and perhaps being cowardly and not courageous in that torrential tumult of war, that he loses his friend. That's the essence of the story. Again, using such a word, that I thought was well rendered. Terry Loane, I go back to, because he made one of my favorite films, and my wife Keely, he made a movie called ‘Mickybo and Me’, which is a charming film if no one has ever seen it. We both, Keely, my wife and I fell in love with that film. Then lo and behold, Terry came to me with another project, which never found wings, and time and years ticked on. Then he came to me with this jewel of a story about Artie, ‘The Last Rifleman’. So I said, "Let's go. Let's make the movie."

Pierce Brosnan in 'The Last Rifleman'. Photo: Sky Cinema.

MF: What are the challenges of playing an older character and can you also talk about the make-up process that you went through for this film?

PB: Well, at this age, I mean, I'm now 70 years of age, so I'm in that wonderful act of the third. But to play this man, I wished and desired to make some transformation, and I found a company called Millennium FX, and they came out to visit with me in California, and we did casts, and we looked at various presentations of myself, of possibilities of what I might look like when I'm 93, and I thought that was necessary for me to try and portray this character. So, it was a ritual every day, and I knew it was going to be so, and that is the delight of being an actor now at this age and having done what I've done as an actor and lived in the world of some representation of myself as a man and as an actor, to try and get away from that, to try and transform. So, it was quite demanding, but it was also a wonderful meditation every morning, with these wonderful artists. It would take about two hours and it was a meditation. I was up at 5:30am, and I would sit in the chair, and these wonderful artists just transformed me. I would open my eyes and after a period there'd be the character. Also, as a painter, as an artist, I did studies, so I have a whole series of self-portraits of myself as this character. So, I came away not only with portraying the man, but also with a piece of artwork, which has its own story.

MF: Finally, Artie goes on this journey because he feels that he has one more thing he must do before he dies. Is there anything that you feel like you need to do before your time on this Earth is up?

PB: Oh, dear, I suppose. But there are so many. You know, one last performance that will seal the deal, one great piece of poetry, or a memoir, or a painting. Yeah, there's so many. It all comes from an artistic life, but I don't really think in those terms of last wishes or last moments. I'm just hope that it comes gently.

The Last Rifleman

"Meet Private Artie Crawford. He’s 92¾ and he’s just gone AWOL."

Not Yet Rated1 hr 40 min

Showtimes & Tickets

A WWII veteran escapes his care home in Northern Ireland and embarks on an arduous but inspirational journey to France to attend the 75th anniversary of the D-Day... Read the Plot

What is the plot of ‘The Last Rifleman’?

Inspired by a true story, Pierce Brosnan plays Artie Crawford, a World War II veteran living in a care home in Northern Ireland who has just lost his wife. On the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, he decides to escape his care home and embarks on a journey to France to pay his final respects.