Just as I got into my seat at the screening, a fellow critic asked me if I knew anything about the movie. I told him, “ I haven't seen the trailers. I have a vague idea about the plot. But its a Liam Neeson movie! Enough said!“ I am not sure if he was impressed with my method of reasoning. But then again even though we love the Taken-esque action from Neeson, we wanted to be surprised; and surprised we were!
A Walk Among the Tombstones is a crime/mystery drama that takes place in 1990’s New York. Matt Scudder (played by Liam Neeson) is an unlicensed detective who works on off-the-record private requests. He’s an ex-cop who left the force due to his alcohol addiction. After years of making a few acquaintances at his sobriety meetings, he is approached by one asking for a favor. It is a request to help avenge his brother who lost his wife amidst her kidnapping. As Scudder slowly gets involved in the investigation, he discovers that the murderer is a duo that targets the families of drug traffickers. With the police having little knowledge about these murders, it is up to Scudder to find and stop the two psychotic killers.
So lets get down to the real deal. Liam Neeson saves his family, kicks a lot of ass and when it gets cold, he even fights wolves. Wait, that’s Taken and The Grey... Sorry, wrong description. As much as we love Neeson doing the aforementioned stunts, A Walk Among the Tombstones is a beautiful exception to that, which surprisingly does not try to exploit the Taken-legacy of the action star. This movie has Neeson play a very different role, where we see very few glimpses of action but more of a dark and gritty detective who not only tries to solve cases that come his way but also fights a battle of morality along with his inner demons.
Scott Frank (screenwriter of The Wolverine and Minority Report), the writer and director of the movie, brings you a gruesome detective thriller that is very 90’s and pleasure to watch. What makes the movie different (also the reason some people may dislike it) is that it a very simple story made in the 90’s style (tailing people vs. tracking them online; no hi-fi tech here), that kind of takes you back to the old days. Now if you are a crime mysteries veteran then you might probably find this movie unstimulating. But looking at the recent offerings at the theatres, A Walk Among the Tombstones definitely makes for something fresh. The direction is interesting and writing a little above average. But the overall execution of the story makes it an interesting watch. There aren’t a lot of big names when it comes to the cast, and in fact a lot of international actors appear, probably as a result of multiple production houses at work. Nonetheless, there are decent performances by Dan Stevens as the first targeted drug trafficker, as well as David Harbour & Adam David Thompson playing the killers. But the focus unarguably lies on Liam Neeson.
I managed to find some time and did some research (read: 20 minutes of browsing the web) about the movie. Fun fact: this isn’t the onscreen debut of Matt Scudders. Matt Scudders is a character created by Lawrence Block and appears in 17 novels by the author. Scudders was previously seen on the silver screen in the 1986 movie 8 Million Ways to Die, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This is his second coming with the adaptation of the 10th (chronologically speaking) book by Block. With a rich collection of stories to back the character, it really makes me wonder if this just the first of a series that just got jump-started!
Like: It’s different; Matt Scudder
Not so much: There are moments where it slumps; has few detective-story cliches
Grade: B+
So lets get down to the real deal. Liam Neeson saves his family, kicks a lot of ass and when it gets cold, he even fights wolves. Wait, that’s Taken and The Grey... Sorry, wrong description. As much as we love Neeson doing the aforementioned stunts, A Walk Among the Tombstones is a beautiful exception to that, which surprisingly does not try to exploit the Taken-legacy of the action star. This movie has Neeson play a very different role, where we see very few glimpses of action but more of a dark and gritty detective who not only tries to solve cases that come his way but also fights a battle of morality along with his inner demons.
Scott Frank (screenwriter of The Wolverine and Minority Report), the writer and director of the movie, brings you a gruesome detective thriller that is very 90’s and pleasure to watch. What makes the movie different (also the reason some people may dislike it) is that it a very simple story made in the 90’s style (tailing people vs. tracking them online; no hi-fi tech here), that kind of takes you back to the old days. Now if you are a crime mysteries veteran then you might probably find this movie unstimulating. But looking at the recent offerings at the theatres, A Walk Among the Tombstones definitely makes for something fresh. The direction is interesting and writing a little above average. But the overall execution of the story makes it an interesting watch. There aren’t a lot of big names when it comes to the cast, and in fact a lot of international actors appear, probably as a result of multiple production houses at work. Nonetheless, there are decent performances by Dan Stevens as the first targeted drug trafficker, as well as David Harbour & Adam David Thompson playing the killers. But the focus unarguably lies on Liam Neeson.
I managed to find some time and did some research (read: 20 minutes of browsing the web) about the movie. Fun fact: this isn’t the onscreen debut of Matt Scudders. Matt Scudders is a character created by Lawrence Block and appears in 17 novels by the author. Scudders was previously seen on the silver screen in the 1986 movie 8 Million Ways to Die, portrayed by Jeff Bridges. This is his second coming with the adaptation of the 10th (chronologically speaking) book by Block. With a rich collection of stories to back the character, it really makes me wonder if this just the first of a series that just got jump-started!
Like: It’s different; Matt Scudder
Not so much: There are moments where it slumps; has few detective-story cliches
Grade: B+
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