MPAA Rating: R/Genre: Neo-Noir Action Thriller/Stars: Liam Neeson, Dan Stevens, Boyd Holbrook, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Brian “Astro” Bradley, Mark Consuelos, David Harbour, Adam David Thompson, Sebastian Roché, Laura Birn, Razane Jammal, Leon Addison Brown, Danielle Rose Russell, Marielle Heller/Runtime: 114 minutes
I think it is safe to start this review off by saying that if you look at it from a distinct angle, there is a fair amount of the 1995 crime thriller masterpiece Se7en to be found in the slice of cinema I am reviewing today, 2014’s A Walk Among the Tombstones. At the same time however, I can also understand why some people might also think this has a fair amount of creative DNA in common with something akin to Taken seeing as a certain actor by the name of Liam Neeson is in the lead role. Trust me when I say however that, besides someone getting kidnapped, this slice of cinema is not even close to what Taken was. Rather, this slice of cinema (a 2nd stab at cinematically adapting a character from a series of novels by Lawrence Block) is for all its flaws (of which there are a few to be found) is a gloomy and bleak yet riveting film noir that would make for a great double feature with something like The Maltese Falcon or The Big Sleep from the 40s. Sure this slice of cinema is not on the same level as the previously mentioned Se7en, but it is still nevertheless one that does make for a fairly riveting time to be had whilst also giving its lead actor a chance to stretch his acting muscles as well as the ones he uses to beat the living daylights out of people and potentially give him a new franchise he should look at investing some more of his time and energy into.
The plot is as follows: Taking us back in time to that long ago period known as the late 90s, the movie tells us the story of a guy by the name of Matt Scudder. Matt, we rather quickly are able to pick up on, was once a gifted cop who was also sadly stricken with a distinct ailment known as severe dependency on alcohol or alcoholism for short. However following his intervention and pursuit in the aftermath of a robbery at a watering hole he happened to be visiting one morning going seriously wrong, we see that our hero has decided to clean his act up, quit being a cop, and instead operate as an unlicensed private investigator of sorts. As such it is in the aftermath of one of his regularly attended AA meetings that we see our hero is approached by one of the people in attendance who would like him to consider a job that their sibling, a guy going by the name of Kenny, would like Scudder’s aid on to say nothing of something he would like to not involve law enforcement in. As a result, we see our hero decide to take this meeting with Kenny and, upon arrival, is fairly quickly regaled with a gut wrenching narrative about how Kenny’s wife was tragically snatched and, despite paying the kidnappers the amount that was agreed upon, we see that they still decided to kill Kenny’s wife and leave her in a car for him to find just for the heck of it. It is also around this time that we start to see Scudder put a few things together and realize that the reason Kenny doesn’t want the cops involved is because Kenny might not exactly be the most law abiding citizen in the world. Of course, while Scudder politely yet firmly makes the choice to not look into the matter further, we see Kenny shortly thereafter hunt him down again and plead with him to reconsider claiming that all he has left to live for is to ensure that he gets some form of justice against the guys who did this to him. Yet while Scudder, unsurprisingly, decides to take the case on especially after hearing a tape that the killers left of Kenny’s wife’s final moments, it isn’t long before he discovers two things. One this is a case that deals with more than just a single dead woman and two the men he is hunting might just be some of the sickest and most perverse he has ever matched wits with. As such, what was once a simple case of kidnapping and murder has now turned into an investigation that by the time it is over will take our hero down a truly dark road unlike any he has traversed before….
Now right off the bat it should be noted that behind the camera, this slice of cinema is truly blessed to have such a team of professionals working back there in order to bring such a riveting yet bleak narrative as this one so vividly to life. Indeed this film’s helmer, one Scott Frank, has shown in a fair amount of his other works that he has a passion for this type of material and as a result is able to give this film a mood that is just the right mix of bleak yet riveting thus bringing to mind a lot of the finer film noir entries from back in the day. In addition, this slice of cinema is also aided immensely not just by actually being shot in a lot of the rundown and seedy NYC locales that it is supposed to be taking place in, but also by its cinematography unit managing to utilize a distinct range of color (or lack thereof) which manages to strengthen the gloomy atmosphere perfectly. Finally, I also think that praise must assuredly be extended to this slice of cinema’s music composer, one Carlos Rafael Rivera, for providing this film with a score that may be quite albeit unexpectedly melodious and soulful, but is also very much on point with the kind of film that this is a part of. As such, we see that it manages to work perfectly with the rest of the behind the camera ingredients in making this film work on the level that it does in not only bringing you into the mystery at the heart of the film, but enveloping you in the overall world of the film as well.
Of course, perhaps the best component that this slice of cinema has working for it would have to be the fact that it manages to showcase truly gripping and riveting performances from darn near every single actor in this cast from Liam Neeson’s stoic yet ultimately valiant and upstanding main character all the way to Brian “Astro” Bradley who makes for a terrifically sassy yet also gifted quasi-sorta sidekick who begins going everywhere with our hero in the hope that he’ll be able to pick up and learn just what it takes to be a good private investigator since he has aspirations to be one. Now before I go any further in talking about certain other members of the cast, I feel it should be said that I really dug the bond between Neeson and Astro. Indeed not only is it one that is the best aspects of surrogate parent and mentor-mentee rolled into one, but their back and forths with each other prove to be consistently comedic as T.J. tells Matt about his theories about the ways that are supposedly keeping people like him in line while Matt continues to respond that he understands whilst also looking continuously and wonderfully confused. Suffice it to say that the end result truly is a beautiful friendship that plays out like one of the finest dynamic duos in a slice of this ilk in some time. Now even though he is saddled with a partner to some degree in this, it should still be said that Neeson manages to make the most of every minute of screen time he gets whilst also going to a place as an actor I haven’t witnessed him go in a while. Indeed “riveting” might only begin to scratch the surface, but by the same token it is the first word that comes to mind in regards to the character of Matt Scudder. Indeed he might not be the quickest to pull out his gun, but Neeson is once more able to give us a character who can deal with bad guys if for no other reasons than he is a legit badass and because he is incredibly persuasive. I mean there is literally a moment in this where he gets a suspect to put down the knife they’re holding by telling them in detail how he will get the drop on him and then proceed to stab the heck out of him. Suffice it to say there is not an instance in this where I am not hooked by this man’s gift for mixing together tactical skill along with brilliance and fearlessness in such a way that even though 8 years as of this writing has come and gone I still would like to see Neeson play this character at least one more time because he really manages to be the Neeson we all know and love in this and so much more. Just as terrific as Neeson in this however are the diabolical duo of David Harbour and Adam David Thompson who, as the men that Neeson is hunting in this, showcase a fairly spine-tingling degree of satisfaction at being embroiled as the prey in this perilous hunt since they are in equal measure predators as well. Yet even though Thompson chooses to deploy an ice-cold glare in order to best show off an existence that is lacking in both soul and conscience, it is Harbour who is the most vocal of the pair and does so with a sick and creepy charm that will revolt you every time he is on screen. I mean I can safely say that the character Harbour plays in this will undoubtedly see your stomach do some serious flips if only because he’s the kind of revolting monster who can butcher someone with ease and then have no qualms or even think about it the next morning whilst making himself breakfast. Indeed a mix of a shrink’s fever dream as well as the kind of guy that scares women the most, it is the work done in this by David Harbour that will put the most chills down your spines while you, the viewer embarks on this cinematic equivalent to a two hour hunt for no more and no less than pure evil.
All in all it may be visceral, edgy to a t, and significantly more of an entry in the mystery/noir thriller subgenre of movie magic rather than a quick-paced and guns a ’blazing action flick, but the 2014 slice of cinema that is A Walk Among the Tombstones still manages to prove itself to be, amongst other attributes, a nice change in venue of sorts for its lead actor. Indeed whilst Liam Neeson’s character in this does manage to showcase a low-key honing of the ice-cold calm and cunning resourcefulness that Neeson has showcased in other performances as of late, the support cast in this manage to vary from only a teeny tiny bit slimy to just outright insane thus helping to conjure up an atmosphere that is in equal measure potent as well as just plain audacious. Not helping things unfortunately is the fact that the mystery at the heart of this film really is not as novel as it should be even if the music and suspense, as effective as they are, go a long way toward desperately trying to sell audiences on it. Heck by and large the vast majority of the hunting for evidence in this is conducted primarily in a lot of this slice of cinema’s multitude of flashback sequences more than anything. Yes I suppose the main reason that this was done was perhaps to make the story in this a heck of a lot more complicated, but honestly it’s a moot point to attempt to do so. A claim that this reviewer can make due to the fact that this slice of cinema’s lead actor is immediately one performer who has always proven himself to be watchable to some degree or another, his teaming up with a kid who is very much his exact opposite in many respects proves to be quite delightful, the motivations for our twisted pair of killers in this prove to be far and away a heck of a lot more riveting to watch rather than just merely trying to uncover just who in the heck they are, and the multitude of plotlines does provide plenty of terrific opportunities for some truly wonderful character development to occur amongst the cast of players in this slice of cinema. Suffice it to say that even in the face of a resolution that feels like it runs a bit too long for its own good, the film attempting in a rather heavy-handed manner to compare what is going on in the story to the dozen steps of recovery taught in such organizations as AA (of which our main character is a member), and a few other miniscule flaws here and there, A Walk Among the Tombstones nevertheless still manages to gift audiences with not only a riveting narrative and fairly solid work done behind the camera, but another top-flight performance from Neeson in the lead role and a fairly good support cast backing him. Thus if it’s a rainy day outside and you’re in the mood for a mystery film that might be a bit darker than you are used to then give this one a try. I promise you won’t regret it. On a scale of 1-5 I give A Walk Among the Tombstones “2014” a solid 3.5 out of 5.
