The autumn of Liam Neeson’s career has been ablaze with gunfire and money: The “Taken” franchise, which erupted in 2008, has made about $400 million; the thrillers “Non-Stop” (2014) and “Unknown” (2011) made tidy sums, too. “A Walk Among the Tombstones” (2014) was less successful at the box office, but its malice-and-mayhem storyline certainly advanced the Neeson-as- action-star brand.
But why Liam Neeson? And why now? Maybe it’s because after decades of grunting, monotonal action stars, Neeson can actually articulate emotion.
“He’s a really good actor. A really, really, really good actor,” said Jaume Collet-Serra, who may not be impartial, exactly — he directed Neeson in “Unknown,” “Non-Stop” and his latest thriller, “Run All Night,” which opens March 13. But he makes a good point: “Liam really likes these kinds of movies. He likes shooting them, and he likes watching them. Audiences really identify with him in many different ways, and that comes from being a likable guy. Even in this character, he’s really likable.”
“This character” is the weary alcoholic hit man Jimmy Connelly, longtime enforcer for an Irish mob family in New York run by his childhood pal, Shawn Maguire (Ed Harris). Connelly has murdered upward of 17 people over the years and it’s a testament to Neeson’s charisma that he isn’t a purely repellent character. That and a redemptive plotline: When Jimmy’s son, Mike (Joel Kinnaman), witnesses a couple of murders committed by Shawn’s son, Danny (Boyd Holbrook), Jimmy has to side with his estranged offspring over his longtime employer. The fireworks begin.
