Reviewed by Colin Jacobson (August 28, 2025)
If you ever felt the desire to see James Bond and Nick Fury team up for a movie, I come with great news! 2025’s The Unholy Trinity partners Pierce Brosnan and Samuel L. Jackson – and in a Western, to boot!
In Montana circa 1888, Isaac Broadway (Tim Daly) hangs for a crime he claims he didn’t commit. He tells his son Henry (Brandon Lessard) that Sheriff Butler of Trinity framed him.
Henry sets out to avenge his father’s demise but hits a snarl when current Trinity lawman Gabriel Dove (Brosnan) tells him Butler died. Despite this news, Henry continues to seek to clear Isaac’s name, a quest that leaves him with conflicts that involve Sheriff Dove and the enigmatic man known as St. Christopher (Jackson), among others.
Given the jillions of Westerns that hit screens over the decades, it seems nearly impossible for another genre effort to bring anything new to say. Instead, we can mainly hope to find something well-executed.
Does Trinity fit that bill? To some degree, but it lacks consistency.
On one hand, we get a good cast. In addition to Brosnan and Jackson, the film boasts recognizable folks like David Arquette, Q'orianka Kilcher, Ethan Peck and Katrina Bowden.
All do fine, though none quite excel. Jackson essentially plays a variation on the Sam Jackson Character, albeit without the usual “Mfers”.
Still, Jackson becomes the most interesting part of the film. St. Christopher offers the movie’s slipperiest role and Jackson delights in this.
As our nominal lead, Lessard fares less well, partly because he just seems too old for the part. Henry feels like he should be maybe 20, whereas with his thinning hair, Lessard looks much older.
Lessard also just can’t compete with the established pros in the cast. Although he doesn’t hurt the movie, he becomes a weak link.
Perhaps director Richard Gray recognized Lessard was in over his head, as Henry becomes less and less important as the story goes. In theory, the narrative revolves around him, but as executed, Henry partly vanishes into the woodwork during the movie’s second half.
This comes as part of Trinity’s erratic story. It lacks consistency, as Gray never really seems sure where he wants the plot to go.
Still, at least Trinity improves on the two prior Gray films I saw. Both Robert the Bruce and Murder at Yellowstone City pretty much stunk.
Nothing about Trinity really excels, and its less than coherent narrative becomes an issue. Still, the cast make it moderately enjoyable.
