Liam Neeson returns to the silver screen in his latest action movie role since the airplane based thriller Non-Stop. Liam plays the role of a disillusioned cop called Matt Scudder. The movie opens in 1991 when he is a heavy drinker – ordering two shots of whiskey to go with a cup of coffee. However, they are not the only two shots he would get on this day. A trio of ragamuffins enter the cafe and start firing and Scudder is in pursuit through the crowded streets of New York and takes out two of them without remorse. He follows another down some steps and shoots him in the leg and, as the credits roll through a fancy camera angle, the film sets us up quite nicely for another action based thriller that we come to know and love from Mr Neeson. Fast forward to the turn of the century in 1999 – where the fear of the y2k “millennium bug” is looming over the world, and to “google” something you would have to sift through a load of microfiches, he is now a private investigator of sorts. We discover Scudder is no longer a police officer but more of a guy who does favours for favours. As much as this sounds a bit sinister, it generally means he’s a guy for hire if you are in trouble.
Kenny Kristo (Downton Abbey star Dan Stevens) is a drug dealer and has had his wife killed by some unsavoury characters and sends his brother to track down Scudder to see if he can bring them to justice. Initially Scudder refuses, but changes his mind and the movie’s story begins to unravel. Teaming up with a young teen that has all the street talk and computer knowledge, Scudder goes to track down those responsible with a combination of detective work and gun slinging to bring those responsible to justice.
The movie is well made with some good acting and Dan Stevens, who has been an action hero himself in 2014’s The Guest, plays a good role in the movie. TJ, the teenage sidekick played by Brian “Astro” Bradley, is there to add some street cred and become Scudder’s sidekick. I felt like this character was purely added for a few scenes where he is needed to do the modern to Scudder’s old school, but really could have been left out of the film altogether. The villains of the piece, who are so sinister and evil add an underlying menace to the story as you are never quite sure what they will do or are capable of. I was expecting a Taken style shootfest, but the film is more thoughtful than that, piecing together the mystery as Scudder finds out more and more about these evil serial killers.
The movie is a strong thriller and I liked it – but for those expecting a Taken style blast along will be disappointed. Based on the book of the same name, this film is a thoughtful thriller which has enough to keep you watching to the end. It’s a good movie, but not one of the best.
A Walk Among The Tombstones is out now on DVD and Blu Ray from all good retailers.
POPSCORE: 7/10
What is it? A Walk Among The Tombstones movie
Where can I find out more? http://www.universalstudiosentertainment.com/a-walk-among-the-tombstones/
If you liked this try - Taken, Non-Stop, The Equalizer (2014)
Anything else?
This film is based on the Matt Scudder book series by Lawrence Block
No comments:
Post a Comment