While waiting for “Taken 3,” you can easily dismiss “A Walk Among the Tombstones” – Neeson isn’t at his best here, and there’s not much else to see.
On the cusp of the year 2000, Matthew Scudder, an unlicensed private investigator, ekes out a living with one dull case after another. Several years ago, while still a police officer, Scudder, fueled by alcohol, shot two robbers and caused a tragic accident. Now, the former cop tries to keep his hands off guns, diligently attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, and befriends the homeless. The weight of past mistakes bears down on Matthew with renewed force when a drug dealer approaches him, seeking help after his wife was kidnapped and murdered. Following the trail of one murder, the detective unravels a series of brutal crimes targeting young women and girls.
Liam Neeson’s Star Power
Thanks to Liam Neeson’s popularity and the success of his past hits, the film recouped its budget even before its release, solely through sales at film markets for distribution worldwide.
Liam Neeson has reached such a level of recognition and authority in Hollywood that just his back on the poster of “A Walk Among the Tombstones” sells the film better than a hundred critics and PR professionals. Seriously, does it have a recognizable hairstyle and profile? Yes. Is there a gun? Present. Does the black and white palette set the atmosphere for noir? Absolutely. Well, that’s it – the filmmakers believe. In some ways, they are right, of course, but there’s also a hint of deception here. However, to uncover it, you’ll have to watch the film.
A Franchise Attempt?
So, what exactly is “A Walk Among the Tombstones”? First and foremost, it’s a clear attempt to launch a franchise. American crime writer Lawrence Block has written nearly two dozen novels about detective Matthew Scudder, which producers have long been eyeing. Launching a new series of films with Neeson in the lead role, while the “Taken” trilogy is nearing its end, is an understandable move. However, it’s important to realize that in both parts of “Taken” and in his other similar genre films, Neeson has built a certain image that is difficult for the audience to shake off. To present the hero as the same uncompromising fighter for justice, but acting with different motives, experiencing a complex internal breakdown, and struggling to overcome past mistakes, requires a very good story. Otherwise, the actor simply won’t be able to escape from under the “blanket” of previous roles, but “A Walk” doesn’t particularly try to become a new benchmark.
Joe Carnahan was already aiming to direct “A Walk Among the Tombstones” back in 2002. At that time, Harrison Ford was considered for the lead role in the film.
An Outdated Feel
Primarily, the film feels surprisingly outdated. Despite the fact that the film is set just 15 years ago, everything in “A Walk” resembles the worst examples of police thrillers from half a century ago – in the absence of action, the plot stalls, screenwriter and director Scott Frank tries to portray the vices of his hero as something more than an addiction to the bottle, and the demonstration of violence only emphasizes that the author is using blood to cover up the blandness of the characters and the facelessness of their personalities. As if in justification, a young black orphan, TJ, is constantly brought to the forefront – he is supposed to illuminate the bright side of Neeson’s character, his willingness to help the disadvantaged, protect someone, and communicate.
Why is such a “crutch” needed? Because Neeson’s character himself can’t show anything. Scudder seems like a nice guy, but the viewer knows nothing about how “nice” he is. Is Scudder a scoundrel? Except for the fact that he has a lot of dark deeds in his past, and today he can easily provoke a maniac with a gun, we also know nothing about this. Matthew simply doesn’t want to show himself on screen in any way other than as a reaction to external stimuli, and this is the worst problem for the main character. He should have energy, an inner core, and drive, but Neeson’s character is a liquid filling the vessel of situations. A liquid that is understandable and recognizable, but shapeless and unmemorable.
This is all the more surprising given that Neeson usually manages to pull the blanket over himself everywhere. “A Walk” doesn’t stand up to comparison with the fairly average “Non-Stop,” which was released a little earlier this year – the same problems with alcohol, the same lone warrior, the same tension of a brutal climax, but in Frank’s film, only the shell of Neeson remains. A shadow in an alley. A silhouette against the backdrop of a cemetery. When a secondary boy and a couple of episodic drug addicts “outplay” you in a film, it’s worth considering whether you’ve gotten involved in the right thing, Liam.
However, as an evening’s entertainment, fans of the genre may even like it. It’s far from an exclusive product, if not secondary, but the clichés are used as intended, shooting and fights occur with the frequency appropriate to the given style, and the rain pours on a scale necessary to obtain the title of “noir.” But it would have been much more honest to see some third-tier actor like Dylan McDermott or Frank Grillo in the lead role. Neeson simply doesn’t belong here, it’s too early for him to wander among the graves.