Tag Archives: Liam Neeson

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

February 16, 2022

Posted under

Uncategorized

Comments

Leave a comment

Blacklight

In one of the few instances I can think of, I went to this movie knowing nothing about it except that Liam Neeson was the star. I literally had heard nothing about it and it was only a passing listing on a theater web page that brought me to the movie. The trailer above I had never seen before writing this post, after seeing the film. When I posted it, there were 195,750 views, which does not shout out “Success!” or “Box Office!” in today’s social media environment. That was OK because it is Winter and Liam Neeson is in a movie, so someone is going to do some killing. I am an admitted fan. I somehow missed his last two action films, “The Ice Road” and The Marksman”, but I usually queue up immediately for one of these Winter Action Thrillers. This time I must admit I was disappointed.

This movie is so conventional, it feels like a Netflix retread of an eighties conspiracy film, not a seventies one, which would probably be worthwhile, but more like something drained of inventiveness but slick enough to look interesting for a few minutes. It turns out it never gets as interesting as you hoped it would be. The plot is so simple as to be a trope in and of itself, a government agency is killing citizens it thinks are a risk to the country. This time it is not the C.I.A. or the N.S.A. of some made up intelligence group, it’s the F.B.I. and they have their own rogue operatives. It turns out Neeson’s Travis Block isn’t in on the program, he’s not actually an agent. He works off the books, backing up agents who are in deep cover and need assistance. It’s not clear if the whistle blower agent is his partner, which does not make much sense since Travis is not an agent, or if he is just a close friend. Either way, should he be stopped or praised for coming forward with his story?

No one should be advocating the assassination of someone you disagree with, but the Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez plot device is probably going to amuse some people and outrage others. The idea that what she is doing is actually accomplishing something in the movie is silly, and whoever thought getting rid of her was a good idea is an idiot. Which brings us to the first of the two stupidest characters I have seen in a movie in a while. Aidan Quinn is the F.B.I. Director without a ounce of common sense. If you see this movie, see if you can pick out the three times he screws up in his decision making. There is one plot point where he almost goes BOO! and then runs away from the complication. It is the laziest writing I have watched in a theatrical movie in a long time. This could be one of those Bruce Willis Video films that requires no sophistication at all.

The “journalist” in this film is even more stupid. She seems to have no idea that you need evidence, sources and additional corroboration to make a charge in a news publication. Her editor seems to understand that, but he is even more stupid by publishing her work without verification under his own by-line. The truth is, this may unfortunately reflect the state of modern journalism, we are a long way from Woodward and Bernstein. 

There is a personal story about Travis having OCD and paranoia, so much so that it drives his daughter away from him and creates a potential problem with his granddaughter. You would think that the threat to the family would be a major element of the film, giving Neeson license to unleash his well known special skills. That turns out to mostly be a red herring. He does not go after the bad guys so much as he runs away from them and outwits them a couple of times. Mostly this is an excuse for chases, none of which are very good, although the idea of a garbage truck being used as a vehicle for local destruction is fun. 

I did not hate this film, I simply did not respect it and there are soo many better Neeson Action films, why waste your time? 

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

October 19, 2020

Posted under

Uncategorized

Comments

Leave a comment

Honest Thief

Whatever you do, don’t watch the trailer that is posted above. This is one of those too numerous examples where the trailer is basically a condensed version of the film and it gives away plot points, action beats and storyline without regard to what you want to know going in. I was lucky, I’d never heard anything about the movie, I never saw a trailer, I only knew that Liam Neeson was in it and it fits the action genre that he has owned for the last decade. The truth is, you will know most of where the movie is going as the story unfolds, there really are no big surprises in the film, but why would you want every highlight to be foreshadowed by an image from the trailer? 


So, not having seen the preview, I am watching this and I know immediately who the “bad guys” are going to be. All you needed to do was see Jai Courtney and Anthony Ramos sitting in their cubicle and you just know, these are going to turn out to be crooked cops (or FBI agents as it is). You also keep suspecting that Jeffery Donovan might be a bigger crook except they give him a dog that he actually takes care of. That would not be a scene in the movie if there was a turn for his character. I watched every season of “Burn Notice” and I was happy to see him in a movie, but he does have a somewhat dark persona. Two decades ago, instead of Jai Courtney as the obvious heavy, Robert Patrick would have fit the bill, but as time as marched on, he more naturally fits the senior agent with a case of cynicism and a short story arc. 


The whole point of these kinds of movies is to allow us to do some hero worshipping of Neeson, and watch him use his special skills to bring down the baddies. I think he still looks to be in good shape but it probably is a better idea to have him taking those guys out more with his wits than with his physical skills. The use of IEDs is more believable than a 70 something guy beating up a 30 something guy. Of course nothing in this movie is particularly believable. The premise is that this guy commits these crimes for no reason, never spends the money, and has principles that come back to haunt him only after he falls in love. That is a bit of a stretch. 


What is not a stretch is the chemistry between Liam Neeson and Kate Walsh. I don’t really know her as an actor although she seemed really familiar to me for some reason.  Although she has extensive credits, the thing that I recognized her from was a Cadillac commercial from twelve years ago. She has a great line in the ad, and the same personality was on display in this movie. She is mature enough to feel like a romantic partner for Neeson, and still be someone that can be changed by the experiences the character is going through. The cute meet was maybe the best written scene in the film, and I think they could pull off a romantic movie about adults if anyone is willing to see such a movie anymore. 

So this is a suspense thriller with a revenge plotline about a heist that doesn’t go according to plan. Does that sound like they mixed together enough genres to get your attention? For me it did not matter that it was derivative, soft edged in regard to the violence, and preposterous in concept. I went to this because it was a movie in theaters, not also streaming, just in theaters. It stars Liam Neeson who I love, and it was Sunday afternoon. There was popcorn and the world almost felt normal again. I want the theater experience to return, so I will be going as much as I can, and spending money at the concession stand so the Cinemas can remain open. If the movie is passable and stars someone I enjoy watching, so much the better.

#getyourassintoatheateryouwanks

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

July 1, 2019

Posted under

Uncategorized

Comments

Leave a comment

Men In Black International

I did not have high hopes for this film, the trailers did not seem very interesting and the concept feels a little old. I happened to be in Austin this weekend and I wanted to see a movie in one of the Alamo Drafthouse Theaters and this was the one that was starting at the right time so it ended up being selected simply because of lucky timing. As it turned out it was very entertaining and there is nothing the makers of the film should hang their heads about. I think the lack of success is mostly franchise fatigue and an abundance of similar products in the marketplace.

Chris Hemsworth is still trying to break out as a star outside of the MCU, and you can see why he might choose a part like this. Although I liked him very much in some of the other films he has made, his charisma is still stuck in the God of Thunder role he has owned for a decade now. Tessa Thompson is re-matched with him and they have pretty good chemistry but neither character brings the persona the two original stars did to their parts. It seems you need more than a black suit and a lot of CGI to make this concept work.

Fortunately, there are some funny bits of dialogue and some visual gags that will keep things interesting, but it can never match the charm that the first movie had. If I were ranking however, it would certainly beat MIB 2 which had very little going for it. The concept here suggests there is a traitor in MIB. The trailer makes it seem as if the “Hive”, the supposed antagonist in the story is replicating MIB agents and replacing them. That is misleading, although there is a pretty obvious character to suspect, not because of the script but because casting demands that you make use of someone of that stature in an appropriate manner. 

The shift of the story to Europe is fine and it allows for a few ethnocentric jokes at the expense of Americans, the French, and the British. There is also a sequence set in North Africa and the Mediterranean, so we get a pretty good travelogue as we go through the acts in the film. There may be a little too much of the cutie pie alien in the story, but I did not find him annoying, just a little obvious as to his role function as comic relief. Rebecca Ferguson, Liam Neesen and Emma Thompson are also in the film, and they have slightly better roles. Everybody seems to have a letter code name, which would leave you to believe that there can’t be more than 26 MIB agents at any given time, but that is clearly not the case. There must be some other explanation.men_in_black_international_ver8

So MIB International is not an important movie or essential to any comic book narrative, but it is an entertaining couple of hours that is not too taxing on the brain. If you still like all the CGI transformations, gadgets and aliens, then you should have a pretty good time.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

February 26, 2019

Posted under

Uncategorized

Comments

Leave a comment

Cold Pursuit

I’m more that two weeks late on this post. Life has gotten in the way of many of my pursuits these days, so it is appropriate that this is the film who’s trail I have let grow cold. If I need to be kept warm in the winter months, I need to see Liam Neeson kill people who deserve to die. It warms my heart to see rough justice since we so often miss true justice in real life.

The set up of the film is not complicated. Neeson’s son is murdered by being given an overdose of heroin. The authorities think he was just another drug user who didn’t know his limits. Neeson’s character’s wife thinks they didn’t know their son at all. It is only as he is about to end his own pain that he discovers what really happened and begins to seek retribution on those responsible. Nels Coxman is not an ex assassin, a CIA agent, or a well trained bodyguard. He is a snowplow driver. His approach is not sophisticated, and the fights are not highly choreographed. He is however methodical and intelligent. Nels simply works his way up the food chain, and fresh fish fall into his lap.

At a certain point in the movie, the deaths start piling up as a consequence of his actions rather than his deliberate execution of offenders. Because his motive is not understood, and the bad guys have no idea why these things are happening, they make assumptions based on their vocation which leads to huge complications. This reminded me a great deal of the 70s films “The Stone Killer” and “The Seven Ups”. Gangland crooks mistake their real enemy and start eating their own.

The nice part about this is that just about every crook who we see get his, earns the death that comes to him. The most effective part of the story other than Neeson is the characterization of the low lives. As each one does something horrible, we just get to start anticipating, “OK, you are next”. The film is based on a Norwegian film “In Order of Disappearance”. In the credits, the character names and actors are all listed and the  names vanish in reverse order in listing. It was a clever capstone to the running tally that we have been given during the film.

Laura Dern appears as Nels wife, but she also vanishes from the movie after barely making it into a couple of scenes. The criminals are all the focus in the film. They all have colorful nick names and while the actors are not household names, they add enough personality to make the movie feel worth a watch. William Forsythe shows up as Nels mob connected estranged brother. He provide a little exposition and a satisfying moment with the main villain, but he has only a little to do with the story.

A woman walked out at the end of the movie proclaiming this was the worst movie she’s ever seen, [clearly she has not seen “Vice”]. I did not think it was a great movie by any stretch of the imagination, but I was entertained…and it kept me warm.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

November 18, 2018

Posted under

Uncategorized

Comments

Leave a comment

Widows

A slow burn with a heist that does not carry much weight in the end. “Widows” is a quality film about a criminal enterprise, unfortunately, it is the political system in Chicago as opposed to the robbery that is at the heart of the film. The cast for the film is impressive and the story is full of unpleasant twists but there is something about it that holds me back from a strong endorsement. Those who want a slick crime film will be disappointed because this movie travels down some byzantine alleys and the thing that is around the next corner is usually a downer.

The grime and decay of the neighborhood featured in this movie should be enough to tell you this is not “Ocean’s 4”. There is nothing cute or charming or fun happening here. This is a story focusing on rich criminals robbing each other in the midst of urban decay and neglect. That the criminals are all politically connected should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with how things work in these big urban centers. One crooked deal makes way for another and the only thing more depressing is that everyone considers this de rigueur. The only thing that changes is who gets the power. This movie attempts to shift the power to a group of women by turning them into reflections of evil men. I’m not sure that is the best way to create a story of female empowerment.

It is a little hard to tell what the basis of the opening theft is. The story starts mid-crime when there is a shootout between the robbers and the security team for a local thug who has delusions of political grandeur. Half an hour later we see what happens to those crooks who were supposed to be providing security and got taken. They should have just asked to jump in the van and take off with the money. As it turns out, getting tagged and tracked down to a local warehouse is part of the plan. I can tell you that this detail was not included in the notebook containing the plans for all of the criminal masterminds plans. Viola Davis is an excellent actress and she shows her worth in a couple of grieving scenes. Her husband has been killed in the robbery and her moment trying to gather herself rings very true. In a flashback, we see another death that she mourns and again, it plays realistically although that death plays like a note from a producer on the film who is a little too “woke”.

As the widows begin to plan their robbery, there are several tasks they have to accomplish. Michelle Rodriguez has a very solid scene where she gets caught in a lie and still manages to get a piece of human behavior awkwardly into the moment. Had it gone any further, the moment would seem unrealistic but the guilt and the loneliness of the two people involved really does provide some emotional core for what is otherwise a very cold film. Elizabeth Debicki has the only moments in the film that could be thought of as light. As she tries to get a proxy to buy guns for her, she uses a story that is grimly amusing. Unfortunately, as we have learned, physical abuse at the hands of a man is not a fiction in her life. Cynthia Erivo who I just saw in “Bad Times at the El Royale” is equally good here as a babysitter/hairdresser who gets recruited for the job and turns out to be just the right touch of bad ass under the skin.

As for the rest of the cast, well there are a lot of them and most are solid. Lukas Haas who I just realized was in “First Man”, is a man with a cynically realistic view of romance who enables the women to get a key piece of information. Garret Dillahut makes a second appearance in a Steve McQueen film and this time he is a lot more sympathetic. Colin Farrel, Bryan Tyree Henry and Robert Duvall, dance around each other as political hacks with ambitions that confound each other. Jackie Weaver is the most cynical Mother you will ever hope to meet. It is Liam Neeson however who manages to turn a small roll into a strong performance and with one plot twist turn most of our assumptions around. What starts off as grief turns to long term resentment and finally to the worst sort of betrayal you can imagine. Finally, Daniel Kaluuya lurks in the background, menacing everyone with his crazy eyes and and reckless disregard for humanity.

The exposition that goes on in long conversations between the characters often reflects danger but it is not just physical danger but moral danger we are facing. Only the very last shot in the film provides any hope that the world might be an OK place to live.There was a point in the story where the worst crime we can see coming is directed at an animal, but at least the immorality of all of the characters is not taken out on the dog.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

January 16, 2018

Posted under

Uncategorized

Comments

3 Comments

The Commuter

Liam Neeson and I have a standing date in the winter months. He shows up to kick some ass and I show up to watch him do it. For the last two years however he has stood me up. Unless I’m willing to give him credit for “A Monster Calls” where he did a vocal performance, he has made me go six months of winter without killing anyone on screen. That’s too long and I don’t like it. So of course I was happy to see that he had a January mind numb-er coming out this year.  He has make some exceptionally good action films but he has also made some that are there to simply divert us for a couple of hours, no complaint, and this is a genre picture with no aspirations except to entertain us.

This is the fourth film he has made with Jaume Collet-Serra as director, and like the other three, it is an action film with a unique premise. Neeson is a guy who has been doing a middle class job, in a mundane corporate life, for a decade now, and suddenly he is immersed in a conspiracy and is forced to call on some old skills. You see he is also a former cop. That at least explains why he is able to think the way he does and handle himself pretty well when the fan makes contact with the feces.

Collet-Serra is a competent action director. I really liked his shark movie from two years ago, it was stylish and beautifully shot. There is one fairly artistic touch to this film and it happens during the opening. Neeson’s character goes through a number of days, minute by minute, almost Groundhog Day like.  We see how similar each day of his life has been. There are minor variations of daily issues but the routine is the same. It is as if the life is mundane and you don’t really need to see everything that happens each day because it changes so little. The montage is the pre-title sequence and it does a nice job creating exposition without ever telling us a plot point. We know his life from the outset. This day however turns out a bit different. His work situation changes, his routine is disrupted and a stranger enters his life with a weird proposition. The next thing we know, he is jumping between train cars, engaging in deadly hand to hand combat and trying to outwit a antagonist who apparently knows everything except the one piece of information she wants Neeson’s character to find out.

There is no real surprise that the reason he is connected to the plot here is that he was a cop. Now just which one of the former co-workers is the bad guy? When you have name actors in parts that seem much to small for them, that is usually a tip-off that more is coming. In this film there are two possibilities, and the story keeps you guessing up to the climax, when it seems it could be either of the two, and then there is the turn and it is revealed. So we had some cat and mouse, some procedural and a couple of action sequences up to this point. Finally, there is a Spartacus moment and you will appreciate characters that maybe you didn’t think much of before. There are two Macguffins, a person and something they are carrying. In the end, neither is very interesting but we do get to see the psychological test that the antagonist has set up for us. Vera Farmiga has about the same number of scenes as her costar from the Conjuring films, Patrick Wilson, has. They never have any scenes together and it does seem odd that the casting went this way given their history together in movies. It’s not important, it’s just a quirk I noticed.

Long time character actor Johnathan Banks has a brief role and he was fine. Sam Neil is another name that is dangled as a suspect for us and you can certainly see why they went that way. Elizabeth McGovern is Neeson’s wife, with very little screen time and no character at all. This is an entertaining couple of hours that will leave no marks and doesn’t require additional viewings once everything has been revealed. I’m just glad there are still mid-level action films being produced for weekend consumption in the deadest part of the year.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

January 16, 2017

Posted under

Uncategorized

Comments

Leave a comment

A Monster Calls

It’s January, so I’m ready for my annual dose of Liam Neeson kicking someone’s ass. So today we saw this and he did it, the only problem is that it was my ass he kicked. This is a sad story about the worst thing that can happen to a kid. As it builds up to the climax, I became more and more effected by it. At first I thought I was withstanding the story pretty well but then I turn around and there is Mr. Neeson’s voice, ready to help knock me down and remind me that I am a human being who is a big cupcake.

This is a story that seems like it should be familiar but it is told in a very unique way. As I mentioned, the arc of the narrative concerns the loss of a loved one and the young man that has to face this truth is struggling with a way to confront it. The Monster that comes is not friendly but in a strange way is very supportive. The story is direct but there are three specific moments when the monster tells a tale to young Conor. Much like A Christmas Carol, Conor is visited on separate occasions and each time he a story is shared with him. Buried inside of each tale is a lesson, but it is never a clear lesson and Conor finds the stories increasingly confounding to the task he has of finding a cure for his mother.

A third of the way into the film, Conor’s Grandmother appears. She is played by Sigourney Weaver, using the slight British accent that she probably picked up in “The Year of Living Dangerously” or “Half Moon Street”. The Grandmother is stern and foreboding in young Conors life. He sees the future that he despairs of in her and does not sense the warmth that he and his own mother have. Part of the story will have to manage that relationship more delicately. His father is an expatriate living in Los Angeles. He does not appear to be a practical lifeline even though he wants what is best for his son. Mom is played by Felicity Jones  and she is suitably beautiful and haggard as the path of her disease progresses. Louis MacDougal plays Connor and his most affecting scenes are with his Father, the bully who abuses him, and ultimately the two women who have and will dominate his life.

The real story here is a child trying desperately to reconcile himself with the loss of the most important person in his life. The Monster represents the turmoil and the tragedy that he is facing, but it never acts exactly the way you expect the story to go. Ultimately there is a turning point, and we can see that coming, but the path there is torturous and may leave some audience members a bit slack jawed. One of my favorite things about the film is that it contains some beautifully animated sequences that illustrate the tales being told. I suspect the water color paintings are based on the illustrations used in the book from which this film derives. Although containing some fairy tale elements, they are not really Disney friendly. Conor has to try to make sense of them and it is a final turn in the story that helps bring it all together.

Neeson is the voice of the Monster but his image does appear in a photograph that suggests Conor’s Mother in her childhood with her own father. Neeson has done voice work before. As Aslan (or God if you like) in the Chronicles of Narnia he was suitably ponderous. His two faced cop in the Lego Movie was just the right touch of sardonic indifference. In this film his voice is ferocious and soothing and sometimes harsh. In the end it is a comforting voice, maybe like all of our fathers, a bit scary at times but also a voice that we feel we can trust. Grief and guilt need to be met with a purposeful and supportive figure. Until Conor can find that in the adults around him, he has a Monster to call upon. This is a sad story that may be tough for children to endure as well as soft hearted adults. It is however a worthy drama and ultimately redemptive, but in a painful way.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

March 15, 2015

Posted under

Uncategorized

Comments

Leave a comment

Run All Night

There will be cynics out there who will dismiss this movie as another reach for your wallet, simply because of our love of Liam Neeson. I am as guilty as the next person of perpetuating the chain of Neeson badass characters showing up in the first part of the year and giving us some meaningless action pieces. “Unknown“, “Taken 2“, “Non-Stop“, and “Taken 3” are all about an inch deep and are really just an attempt to allow Liam to play a hard case. The storytelling in those movies is not well thought out and the action is usually shot in a manner designed to give us a memorable moment with Liam Neeson with a gun in his hand. While there is a moment like that in this film, the rest of the movie strays far from the formula and builds a real story around a sad character that we should have no sympathy for but who ultimately tries to redeem himself for his son and for all of us watching.

“Run All Night” comes much closer to the great Neeson action films of the last few years; the original “Taken”, “The Grey” and last years criminally under appreciated “A Walk Among the Tombstones“. Like those films, his character’s weaknesses are developed as part of the story, not just laid on to create background. His character, Jimmy Conlon, is a mob enforcer formerly known as “The Gravedigger”. Jimmy’s fortunes have fallen by the wayside as he drowns his nightmares in drink and sloth that barely keep him alive. His best, friend and former employer makes sure that he is taken care of but no longer entrusts him to do the dirty jobs he was once responsible for. That friend, Shawn McGuire, played by Ed Harris, no longer needs that help because his business is more legitimate and less violent than it once was, at least until his son Danny tries to make a name for himself in the rackets. If you have seen the trailer, you know the set up of the movie and it looks like it will be standard action killings for a couple of hours. There are indeed several action sequences and a lot of people get dead, but unlike the disposable types of perfunctory death that Neeson’s characters usually provide, these all take a toll on him one way or another. As he attempts to protect his son, Jimmy is forced to confront his legacy as well and it is not a pretty picture.

Neeson plays a real character here not simply some automaton  that walks through the door with guns blazing. The strained relationship with his son makes the process of trying to protect his boy more difficult. The fact that he understands his enemy so well because he once was that enemy is a slap in the face for the kind of person he has been most of his life. Ed Harris give a very strong performance in the film as the conflicted best friend and boss who now wants to make his former associate suffer for what are really his own faults as a father. He knew his kid was a bad seed, but he loved him. The tough love he tries when Danny attempts to build a drug kingdom, is directly responsible for the death of his son. No one will be able to accept that when he can put the blame on a boogie man that he helped create. Jimmy and his son Michael (Joel Kinnaman), become the fall guys for McGuire’s own faults. Everybody knows this except Michael, the grown son of Jimmy with a young family of his own and the good sense to stay away from his father’s old life.  When Michael tries to do the right thing, it leads to all hell breaking loose. Some cops are crooked, old haunts become dangerous and old friends want to kill the father and son. Reason was never a strong suit with these characters and there is no way of making this right. Ed Harris just received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and it was timed to go with this films opening. He can be proud that his work here is more vital than some of his recent efforts like “Snowpiercer”.

Even though it is a well told story, there are still a few trite elements that are inevitable. Michel’s family is in jeopardy so there will be scenes of them being stalked. The father-son dynamic is stress filled so there will be some defiance of orders/advice given by a criminal to his honest as the day is long son. An implacable hitman is put on the job to dispose of the pair, regardless of the fact that Shawn already has nearly two dozen guys and insiders in the police department working on the task. So if there is so much SOP in this movie, why do I see it as being so much better than the rest of these films? One reason is that there is a side story of a dedicated but frustrated cop who knows what Jimmy has done in his life and he still wants answers for those who have been gone for years. Vincent D’Onofrio is the weary but dogged honest cop who could be a key to saving Michael, if Jimmy plays it straight. An uncredited big name shows up for one scene and delivers a heart rending piece of information that makes it even more impossible for Michael to trust his Dad. There are also good supporting performances from the thugs and victims of the story. Whenever Bruce McGill shows up in a movie, it gets a little better, I only wish he had more to do in this.

The director Jaume Collet-Serra, who made “Non-Stop” and “Unknown” with Neeson before, has a much better story here and he uses the camera and the city of New York in an interesting way to tell it. Ultimately though, it is the story arc of Jimmy that makes this work. He is legitimately troubled by his past but lives through it in daily misery as a penance for what he has done. He never sees this as a chance to redeem his relationship with his son, he knows that he is a dead man, he just wants to do the right thing at the end of his life. The relationship he and Shawn had is brought to life by the solid work done by Liam Neeson and Ed Harris. Their scenes together are sad but reflect a deep bond in spite of the circumstances. You will get a requisite amount of mayhem, but you will also get a tragic story of wasted lives and lost friendships.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

January 10, 2015

Posted under

Action, Movies

Comments

Leave a comment

TAK3N

This should not take too long. This is a perfunctory sequel to a sequel to a terrific movie. It has little to offer on it’s own, except for standard action sequences and interminable car chases and crashes. The story is convoluted nonsense that  fits into many of today’s thrillers where criminals lurk around every corner and there is a convenient betrayal behind every door. All the actors do their jobs but it is mostly going through the motions rather than creating something memorable or essential. None of this is a surprise after the lackluster second entry, also directed by Olivier Megaton. When I looked back, I was more enthusiastic than I remember, and I know I must have been somewhat blinded because I have never revisited the sequel.

There are three things that make this movie worth a visit. Forrest Whitaker does a nice job playing a sharp LAPD Detective. At some point in his career, someone decides that he would make a good cop. I think he has been an FBI agent or a cop in the last two or three things I saw him in. The part is not especially well written but he adds some thoughtfulness to it through his performance and especially his voice. The second element that makes this somewhat worthy is the use of Bryan Mills team of buddies. That actually get to do something in this movie and they show they are pretty clever also. They still could have been utilized more but at least they don’t just show up and drop something off for him.

The third thing that makes this somewhat worth seeing is the star himself. Liam Neeson can now play these parts without breaking much of a sweat. Whether that is a good or a bad thing depends on your view of Neeson. I have always liked him as an actor, my family jokes a little that I have a mancrush on him. I’m a fan, and I will probably always be available if Liam wants to show up on screen and kill a bunch of people. I do think it is interesting that he became an action star at the point in life when other action stars who have been doing these kinds of movies much longer, are sometimes mocked for being geriatric. He did star as “Darkman” in 1990, but his career did not really become littered with action roles until maybe ten years ago. I suppose he still feels fresh enough to the audience that we can still go with it.

Now the other things that made this movie a problem for me. I already mentioned the frequency of car chase sequences but they are problematic for some other reasons as well. The director shoots the car scenes in such frequent close ups that at times you might forget that the characters are in cars. Thie action of the cars is also so tight that you can’t really get a sense of what is happening to whom, except that there is a lot of mayhem in most of these parts. The ubiquitous shaky cam is present in all of these scenes as well, and once again instead of creating tension or a feeling of being in the action, it creates a sense of vertigo that made at least one member of our party nauseous enough that they had to leave the theater. The action sequences also have that problem, but they suffer from a bigger deficiency, “sanitized brutality”. There is a minimum of blood, the broken bones and cracked skulls don’t jump out and make you winch they way they did in the first film. There is something too “PG-13” in the way the material is being put together. I did however appreciate Bryan’s impromptu waterboarding sequence. It can’t hold a candle to the electric shock scene in the original “Taken”, but it does show what a nasty customer Bryan can be.

I liked the movie a little more than the second film, but neither will betaken_three very memorable. If you are a connoisseur of Liam Neeson action films, than you can’t really skip this one. It is a part of a Neeson Franchise and so it is necessary for you. If you are interested in an average action thriller for a date night, this will suffice. If you wanted a good movie, move along, this will not give you what you need. The fact that i enjoyed it probably says more about my faults than it does about the quality of the film.

Standard

Posted by

Posted on

January 2, 2015

Posted under

Top Ten

Comments

Leave a comment

Traditional Top 10 for 2014

[A New Years Resolution is to move material to this site as it becomes available. I’ve been negligent about doing so but here is a start.]

There is something satisfying about closing out the past year and starting the new year with an inventory of favorites. Almost everyone enjoys making and reading lists, and I think it’s because it reminds us of what is out there and it allows a quick form of social comparison to everyone else inventory. I don’t know how other bloggers feel about their work, but all of us are narcissistic enough to hope that others will enjoy reading what we have to say. Frankly, when I look back I appreciate the tone of what I have written and my own enthusiasm or disdain.

My list is not an attempt to thoroughly evaluate the films of the last year, there are too many quality pictures that I have yet to see. “Birdman”, “The Theory of Everything”, “Boyhood”, “The Imitation Game” are all films that are mentioned during awards season here that I have yet to experience. I know that I will be seeing some of these at the upcoming “Best Picture Showcase” put on by AMC Theaters, so I am not in a panic, but I am limited to ranking those films that I did see.

I have varied tastes and limited resources. I pay for everything I see in a theater, and on a weekly basis I have to decide based on mood and release patterns what it is I will see. Of the 54 new films released in 2014 that I paid to see in a theater, these are my favorites, click on the poster image for the original review.

10. Jodorowsky’s Dunejodorowskys_dune

Film makers are craftsmen, artists, businessmen and sometimes they are visionaries. Alejandro Jodorowsky is one of those directors with a vision. It was grandiose, wondrous, and completely over the top. The ideas for his version of “Dune”, the Frank Herbert novel that he had never even read were impractical but also spectacular for the time period he was working in. When you hear him tell the story, you will know why the film did not come together, and you will mourn this lost opportunity.

9. Captain America: The Winter Soldier

captain_america_the_winter_soldier_ver2

Marvel Film Studios have been providing solid comic book action for more than a decade now. They don’t control all of the crown jewels in their own stable of heroes but they have made many of the less well known figures into icons. Of the Avenger’s, Captain America has been my favorite. His traditional sense of right and wrong often conflicts with the murky world of the spies he ends up working with. This film is a terrific concoction of political intrigue and super hero conflict. A thinking man’s comic story in a great piece of pop entertainment.

8. Gone Girl

gone_girl_ver2

Gillian Flynn adapted her own book to screenplay form and the great David Fincher put it together to give us a pretty nasty piece of crime drama. The marriage of two well to do, gorgeous and promising people starts to come apart when the promise does not pay off. Each character has their own failings that make the story compelling but it is the monster Amazing Amy, that will always be the person you will remember the most. Rosamund Pike delivered the best female performance I saw this year in this worthy thriller.

7. A Walk Among the Tombstones

walk_among_the_tombstones_ver2

I have not seen much love for this film at the end of the year. When it was released, a number of other bloggers found it to be average and classified it with the other Liam Neeson action pictures of the last few years. I beg to differ. This somber and depressing story about an alcoholic ex-cop seeking redemption through work as an unlicensed private investigator gives Neeson a chance to stretch those acting chops and the story frankly gives me nightmares. When a shot of someone eating a bowl of cereal is a frightening prospect, you know someone created a real story of horror.

6. Guardians of the Galaxy

guardians_of_the_galaxy_ver2

I did not enjoy any other movie this year more than this second Marvel entry of the list. Not being a comic book aficionado, I had never heard of this storyline or these characters. After two hours in their company, I loved them in the same way I love Luke, Leia and Han. I think that the film makers in this project have created a set of characters and a world of imagination, that has the potential to last decades, the way the original Star Wars story did. It remains to be seen if they can sustain it in a superior sequel, but if they manage it, the next generation has a new touchstone childhood legacy to sustain them.

5. The Lego Movie

lego_movie

I usually end up with an animated film on my list because I love that medium and there is usually a Pixar, Disney, or Dreamworks product to fit the slot. Not this year, the animated movie of the year and one of the best movies of any type is this Warner Brothers release of a movie based on a toyline. Chris Pratt and Liam Neeson make back to back appearances on my list. The voice talent is this movie is amazingly diverse and at times hysterical. Will Arnett’s Batman will entertain you for hours. The look of this movie is like something you have never seen before. The pinnacle of boisterous fun in the film is the theme song that says it all, “Everything is Awesome.”

4. The Grand Budapest Hotel

grand_budapest_hotel

Wes Anderson films are an acquired taste. I can’t say I have seen everything he has made, but I can say that I am always impressed when I have seen his films. This movie could almost qualify as a live action version of the “Fantastic Mr. Fox”. The diversity of characters, the caper elements to the plot and the quirkiness in the action are all repeated in a slightly different story. Ralph Fiennes gives a performance of comic genius proportions and the movie is marvelous to look at. This is a rich meal to be savored rather than junk food to be consumed. I look forward to stumbling upon this film over the years and becoming caught up in it’s elegant weirdness.

3. Nightcrawler

nightcrawler

The central performance that drives this movie is one of the main reasons to see it. Jake Gyllenhall is creepy magnetic and scary, in the most passive ways you can imagine. The movie also has something to say about our culture and the news media, and it does so in a stunningly honest way. It is amazing that the local media here in L.A. allowed themselves to be examined in this way while participating so much in the films production. The nightmare of uncontrolled ambition and manipulation that fills all of the characters but especially Lou Bloom, an entrepreneur in the worst case imaginable example, will haunt you well past the film’s conclusion.

2. Interstellar

interstellar_ver2

The last film I saw in the year, despite being one of my most anticipated. I found much to admire in “Inception” from a few years ago, but I did not drink the Kool Aid at the time. I still thought Christopher Nolan was one of the best film makers of our current crop but that film felt constantly like it was trying to dazzle us rather than say something. I feel the exact opposite about “Interstellar”. It has something to say while dazzling us with the visual story telling. This is an intelligent and thoughtful script with much to say about humanity and love. If “Guardians of the Galaxy” is the new generation “Star Wars” than “Interstellar” is the new generation “2001”. It may not be a film for everyone, but it is a film everyone should see.

1. Whiplash

whiplash

As “Nightcrawler” was a film about unbridled ambition, “Whiplash” treads the same territory from the point of view of two characters rather than just the one. Andrew Neiman, the student drummer with ambition as big as the sky, is as self centered as they come. He manages his relationships but is most satisfied only when he achieves greatness at his vocation. Terrance Fletcher is the teacher that will never tell him he is great. In Fletcher’s mind, that would ruin the clay he is trying to mold. This story could have been another in a long line of inspirational teacher films, instead it plays like a thriller with a high amount of tension and a monster lurking in every scene. J.K. Simmons may be evil incarnate or he may be the greatest mentor in music history. Whichever it turns out to be, you will not forget this performance. This is a movie so completely realized that I can’t think of anything about it that I would want to change. Beware of what you wish for has never been more true a warning.

A few movies just missing my top ten list include: Edge of Tomorrow, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, X-Men Days of Future Past and Muppets Most Wanted.