Rent A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014)

A grisly, violent & compelling film with an outstanding performance by Liam Neeson - A Walk Among the Tombstones review by TB

If you cast your mind back to pre-2008, and mentioned Liam Neeson, most people would think of a wide range of genres & performances, whether it was Oskar Schindler, Qui-Gon Jinn or Michael Collins. Then a little film called Taken, made for practically pennies, came along & made over $220 million, turning Neeson overnight into a later-life action star. Since then, pretty much all of his films, bar one or two, have been in a very similar vein: older man who is able to unleash hell goes after baddies and cleans up, usually not getting hurt and going off smiling into the sunset.

The reason I started the review like this is because, when you press play, this is what many people expect this film to be: another production line slightly schlocky action film. And it is a wonderful surprise that the biggest rug pull is that it's the furthest thing from that, despite amusingly setting up at various times the sort of scenes where you expect Neeson to suddenly flip.

Matthew Scudder is a washed-up, ex alcoholic cop who quit the force after a traumatic confrontation and becomes a private investigator. So far, so every cliché you could imagine. But the genius of the film is that Scudder doesn't use guns or brawn, he actively dislikes and avoids it, preferring to talk people down, but always with the threat that he could neutralise them if they attacked him (cleverly using the viewer's pre-knowledge of Neeson's back catalogue to make this completely believable.) There are also scenes where Scudder is attacked and doesn't fight back, showing a vulnerability which keeps you hooked. And as the film uses this type of storytelling, you care much more about what happens & really invest in the story.

The other great thing this film has in spades is the fantastic cast. Dan Stevens, after starring in The Guest, brings the same lethal charm & gravitas to his role as the destroyed husband of one of the previous victims. The pain he shows along with the hurt & vengeance fills the screen. Another fantastic set of performances come from Adam David Thompson and (before he was well-known) David Harbour as the two kidnappers. Harbour in particular is an absolute monster, totally unhinged & deriving the kind of sick gratification from his crimes that makes your skin crawl. And finally, Brian "Astro" Bradley as Scudder's sidekick TJ, a streetwise kid who despite being homeless, wants a better life for himself and manages to pull off the trick of being played exactly right: not too needy, annoying or distracting of the main narrative. The film even finds time to flesh out his own backstory.

One of the other things about this film which I loved was just how dark it was. The violence, whilst sparse, was at times really unpleasant and shocking. But it was never gratuitous, adding to the overall extreme unease and threat running through the film.

But it was also good that in the final scenes, action fans are also given their payoff. But the film has really earned this and the ending is perfectly realised and written.

Out of all of Neeson's recent work, this is by far the best thing he has done. A perfect meld of thriller, action but also welcomingly the chance for someone who has always been an outstanding actor to actually be able to show the incredible talent he has. The only sadness is that, unlike a lot of his other films, this one did not make megabucks at the box office, so sadly we won't get the chance to revisit this world again and that is a true loss.