Liam Neeson’s career is amazing, and it’s likely to undergo one of the most progressive but significant drops since Charles Bronson joined Cannon Films. Much like his father, who starred in classics like” The Great Escape” and” Once Upon A Time In The West”, Neeson’s job began with his superstar- making position in” Schindler’s Record” and is now mostly recognized for starring in lots of low- resources action films.  ,
Neeson has earned a status as one of Hollywood’s best wizened old gentlemen, with his acting ability to deliver convincing male violence and truly emotional performances. His career has spanned from prestige films like” Gangs of New York”,” Ballad of Buster Scruggs”, and” Widows” to blockbusters like” The Phantom Menace”,” Chronicles of Narnia”,” A- Team”,” Batman Begins”, and” Clash of the Titans” ( in addition to his early work in” Dark Man” and” Excalibur” ).  ,
But for whatever cause, his favorite part in” Taken” has necessarily shifted him into an professional best suited for actions movies. His persona leaned in the direction of his action hero characters in” Taken” and” Unknown,” even parodying it in” Ted 2″ and” The LEGO Movie,” and has since produced more than 16 action movies in the last ten years.  ,
This endeavor has already had to suffer from declining profits. As Hollywood In Toto points out, his last four action movies—” The Marksmen”,” Blacklight”,” Memory”, and” Retribution” — all grossed less than$ 15 million at the box office, and his efforts have begun shifting toward Netflix exclusivity. His newest movie,” In The Land Of Saints And Sinners”, has grossed just$ 2.9 million in the week since it hit venues over Easter weekend. Given that it is one of his stronger new adventures, it is a pity.  ,  ,
Given that so many of the movies combination up, it can be challenging to parse out the subtleties of Neeson’s later work. What sets” The Commuter” or” Non- Stop” off other than the environment? How many different ways can the same revenge-thriller story be told or how our aging sun can use such skill to use weapons?  ,
Luckily,” In the Land of Saints and Sinners” seamlessly blends the age and melancholy of its direct character, a 1970s Irish hunter who is caught in the IRA’s relations as he struggles with the grief of a lifetime of senseless shooting. It is n’t a particularly complex story and comes dangerously close to pretentiousness every time its lead character begins to quote Dostoyevsky, but it works well as a B-movie that makes its world feel lived in and gritty.  ,
The film’s hitman characters are essentially Westerns, acting in direct or indirect as gun slingers in a lawless society where their actions bind or cause chaos for the general public, with many of the kids being killed by random car bombs. Neeson is 71 years old, so it intelligently exploits his persona by framing the proceedings and posing as if there is such a thing as sin pardon.  ,
Alas, a new Liam Neeson film in a setting where he’s had six action releases in the last two years places even a good Neeson film in a bad spot. As evidenced by his 2019 film” Cold Pursuit “‘s 6.7 million views on Netflix this past October and a ratings victory over several recent Netflix Originals, audiences seem willing to seek out his movies. However, they are n’t rushing out to see the films in theaters.  ,
It certainly has n’t helped his career that Neeson is so politically outspoken, having taken public partisan stances on gun control, abortion, toxic masculinity,# MeToo, Islam, Brexit, and Trump. He is n’t politically affiliated, but his views skew progressive, with him promoting former candidate Hillary Clinton and condemning Donald Trump. He was briefly suspended from filming for an interview in 2019 after admitting to having struggled with racism after a traumatic event in his early life and criticizing the “political correctness” surrounding the backlash, but he’s mostly managed to stay in Hollywood’s good graces thanks to his persistent activism. He most recently appeared on MSNBC’s” Prosecuting Trump” on March 21 to dramatically recite Trump’s indictments alongside Glenn Close.  ,
Regardless, Neeson remains a popular entertainer despite how people interact with his extracurricular statements. His films are gracefully not very political, meaning they are n’t preaching partisan talking points. They’re political in the sense that anything is political, given that his films deal with crime, terrorism, human trafficking, and gun violence, but rarely stick their head out the window to shame middlebrow audiences for their beliefs.  ,
Unfortunately, whether because of his politics or oversaturation, audiences are n’t rushing out to see his movies. This places a strong B-film like” In the Land of Saints And Sinners” in a difficult position, being ignored by an aching audience for reasons beyond the scope of the film.  ,
Neeson has n’t wasted his efforts to pursue more challenging roles as a performer, given that he will appear in Ethan Hawke’s upcoming Flannery O’Connor biopic” Wildcat.” Neeson may not be the last to go forward, but one hopes he will be able to take the audience’s requests, whether on Netflix or in various films.
Tyler Hummel is a Nashville- based freelance journalist, a College Fix Fellow, and a member of the Music City Film Critics Association. He has contributed to The Dispatch, The New York Sun, Hollywood in Toto, The Pamphleteer, Law and Liberty, Main Street Nashville, North American Anglican, Living Church, and Geeks Under Grace.
