Liam Neeson had a career revival back in 2008 film Taken, showing the world that his scowl and straight-faced determination naturally lends itself to playing the kind of outside-the-law American hero he has now been sort of typecast in to. In Scott Frank’s A Walk Among The Tombstones, Neeson adapts to a similar role, albeit much, much darker. In terms of Tone ‘Tombstones’ makes Taken look bright and chirpy, and Matt Scudder – his character here – makes Bryan Mills – his character there – seem a bit more one-dimensional.
Scudder is a brooding former NYPD who know lends his capable hands to those who can’t or won’t go to the police. He gets “gifts” in return because he really gets the job done. It’s a character adapted from a series of books by Lawrence Block, with Frank picking and choosing enough from the novels to build Scudder into someone who is as intriguing and warm as he is fearful and terrifying. Neeson has now had more than enough experience in resting bitch face mode as he navigates the bad guys of the world with cold precision and capable vengeance, and it benefits him here. Scudder has a bit more depth than Taken’s Mills, he is full of regret from the time he accidentally shot and killed a young child while drunkenly disposing of robbers, he has a problem with alcohol, and he – in his own deadpan way – really cares about those less fortunate than himself. Take TJ (Astro, a former contestant on The X Factor) for example, he is a homeless teenager with an endearingly inquisitive and too-smart-for-his-own-good personality who happens to have great chemistry with Scudder despite their dialogue coming across as a bit awkward. TJ drives the humour here, making up for the lack of brightness in Scudder and actually proving to be a useful asset to the main plot.
The main plot involves a well-acted drug kingpin named Kenny Kristo (Dan Stevens) using his junkie brother to set up a meeting with Scudder, during which he tries to hire him to take vengeance on his wife’s kidnappers who both took his ransom and killed her anyway (by chopping her up and placing her body parts inside little bags). The brutality of the few deaths in this movie create a much more sinister and gritty atmosphere than any film Neeson has been in before, and Kristo’s desperation only drives home the fact that these kidnappers are men who deserve far worse than what the proper authorities can give them.
The way Frank has treated the direction of both the atmosphere and his characters has an incredible depth to it, with Scudder being perhaps one of Neeson’s most dynamic roles. There’s shades of Taken’s Mills there, but it’s blended with the regret and meaningful soul-search of a gun-toting loner which Scudder brings to the table. He may need other, meaningful relationships – like his one with TJ – to bring the shades out of him, but once they are out the movie becomes infinitely more interesting than many similar films.
The great performances complement the nasty ambiance of the film nicely, distinguishing everyone and their certain roles to really involve you in the movie, especially once the slow-building stand-off results in enough mild twists and turns to keep things as grounded as they can be. It’s well worth a look if you appreciate what kind of atmosphere is made by the subtle terror and very real sadism that our protagonist fights again, just don’t go in expecting anything like Taken; this is a new kind of beast, and though it’s even more disconcerting, there’s a beautiful aesthetic there that is hard to resist.
Review Score: THREE AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Running Time: 114 minutes
A Walk Among The Tombstones is currently screening across the country in all major cinemas
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