Taken 3

delivered pretty much what I expected:  a fun ride that made little sense.  Though the weakest of the trilogy, it still couldn't go but so wrong with Liam Neeson stalking through it and killing people right and left. 

I won't bother explaining the plot because, really, do you care?  The story introduces the characters, gives Neeson reason to go after some people, and then runs along.  It could have been tighter and faster--its pacing is the weakest of the lot--but if you enjoy this sort of film, you'll have a good, though not great, time with it.

We left the theater planning what the next few Taken films might be. 

He's baaaack

Liam Neeson, that is, in January, in the third installment of the Taken series. 



Clearly, I will be there.

Liam's coming back

and boy is he pissed this time.



I can't wait to see it!

A Walk Among the Tombstones

is a bit of a throwback, the sort of noir film we don't get much these days.  Based on the Lawrence Block novel of the same name and featuring Liam Neeson as Block's ex-cop, Matt Scudder, the movie captures a great deal of the feel of the Scudder novels.  That fact was one of the reasons I quite enjoyed the movie, but it also means this is a dark movie with moments of graphic violence, even brutality. 

Neeson is a noir-film protagonist in the classic mold, a man who has done bad things and who knows he will do them again, but one who tries to play by his rules in a world that often appears to have no rules. Some critics have faulted the movie for staying within its genre and for having some of the faults of that genre, but I disagree that this is a problem.  The film is a noir detective story, and if you like those, as I do, that's a fine thing indeed. 

The world's lack of rules is most present in the bad guys, who are very, very bad indeed.  I warned that the movie contains brutal moments, and the bad guys deliver them in moments that are upsetting indeed.

Some critics, such as Allison Willmore, have criticized the film for using women only as meat.  They're right.  The movie's greatest weakness lies in its depiction of women as either objects of perfection glimpsed in beautiful moments or, more commonly, as victims, meat for the villain butchers.  The opening sequence is the most disturbing instance of this behavior, but it's not the only one.  It feels as if the filmmakers were trying to set the 1999-based movie in an even earlier time and striving for a retro feel, a time when many, many movies treated women that way (well, many still do, but that's another essay), but the result is uncomfortable by today's standards. I wish the filmmakers had dealt with women rather differently, something I believe would be possible without altering the movie in any fundamental way.

In the end, as is my wont, I enjoyed A Walk Among the Tombstones despite this flaw and the film's other weaknesses, but I remain a bit uncomfortable with that enjoyment.  I recommend it only with this reservation and the warnings above.

5 movies I'd like to see remade with Liam Neeson

Liam Neeson has not let age stop him from becoming one of the hottest action stars in Hollywood.  His odd, hulking presence combined with an ability to act, something many action stars lack, has let him become a credible hero even though he's 62 years old.  He's starring in one of the hot movies opening this weekend, A Walk Among the Tombstones.  It's his second live-action star turn this year. 

And I, like many of my friends, can't get enough of him in these roles.

Thinking about this topic led me to wonder just what it would be like to see Neeson take on the challenge of remaking some classic action films.  Here are five (of the many such films) I'd like to see.

1. First Blood: Stallone was fine as Rambo and turned the role into a franchise, but imagine the story with Neeson being escorted out of town.  He wouldn't need a tank top or a special knife; he could do it all without ever taking off his trench coat.
2. Road House: Patrick Swayze was always too small for this role, and he spent too much time showing us his chest.  Neeson would loom over everyone else and be the ultimate club cooler. 
3. Mad Max: Mel Gibson, back when his head could still fit in a normal-size building, drove his way through the desolate outback and into our hearts in this post-apocalyptic gem.  Neeson could do the whole movie on foot. 
4. The Terminator:  Need I say more?  We sure as hell would believe Neeson when he said he'd be back.
5. Die Hard:  Yeah, I know that Bruce Willis is three years younger than Liam Neeson, but so what?  The last Die Hard saga proved Willis can't keep this franchise going any longer.  Give Liam a chance.  He can bring it back.  Liam has particular skills.

Any studio that doubts Neeson's ability to resuscitate any of these films can easily buy an insurance policy:  Cast The Rock (oh, excuse me: Dwayne Johnson) as the bad guy opposite Neeson.  Pure box-office gold. 

Imagine the all-night Liamathon you could have with this list!