Director: Hans Petter Moland
Writer: Tony Gayton
Stars: Liam Neeson, Ron Perlman, Frankie Shaw
Synopsis: An aging gangster attempts to reconnect with his children and rectify the mistakes in his past, but the criminal underworld won’t loosen their grip willingly.
For better or worse, Liam Neeson has stayed in the public’s mind because he churns out about two horrendous movies a year. Frankly, the actor, so brilliant in films like Schindler’s List, Rob Roy, and Gangs of New York, has fallen into a rut of “lonely white guy seeking revenge” films since Taken hit theaters in 2008. On the surface, his latest film, Absolution, seems like yet another movie in which Liam Neeson takes the screen and does Liam Neeson action things.
For every The Grey, you have a dozen films that would never find a home without streaming: Non-Stop, A Walk Among the Tombstones, Run All Night, The Commuter, Cold Pursuit, Honest Thief, The Marksman, The Ice Road, Memory, Retribution, and the wildly overrated In the Land of Saints and Sinners. Sure, a couple in there have their loyal fans, but why does such a talented leading man keep leaning into the same film and character, year after year, as if he lost a bet or is part of some elaborate fraternity pledge-week prank?
However, Absolution is different because it has some real grit and isn’t afraid to stretch its experimental wings a bit. The result is a slow-burning crime thriller that takes more chances than most in the genre, scratching the itch for a revenge-filled cinematic fantasy while stepping into a few Neeson tropes along the way. If only the film had the same conviction in its third act as Tony Gayton’s (Hell on Wheels) script does throughout.
Neeson stars as a nameless muscleman who works for a local gangster known as “Thug.” He’s breaking in a new kid (Daniel Diemer), making the rounds, collecting weekly payments, and taking occasional side jobs for Mr. Connor (Hellboy’s Ron Perlman), a typical Southie crime boss walking around Boston. Thug hints at memory issues but plays it off as a lack of sleep after forgetting his boss’s name. In the real world, you may retire early. In Thugs’ world, the gold watch may come with a finely stained coffin.
After punching a guy in the face for making a scene at his local dive bar (and taking his woman, Yolonda Ross, home, no less), he visits a neurologist who breaks the bad news: he has CTE from years of busting heads and knuckles with his forehead. With little time left, he tries to make amends with his estranged daughter (Frankie Shaw) and the grandson he has never met. Of course, Thug sees wrongs, and he feels he must set right, and the lines between what is real and what is not begin to blur.
The story’s theme feels like it may have been inspired by James Cromwell’s Dudley Smith asking Kevin Spacey’s Jack Vincennes, “Have you a valediction, boyo?,” in L.A. Confidential. Directed by Hans Moland, who worked with Neeson on Cold Pursuit, the film has no trouble focusing on Neeson and utilizing his greatest strengths in Absolution. The actor is an undeniably stoic presence and often broods, bringing out an inner conflict that makes this character compelling—a key element in a story filled with revenge, grief, and personal redemption.
As the film moves along, Absolution successfully combines personal elements, crime thriller tropes, and experimental techniques to immerse the viewer in Thug’s dementia, which somehow works. The story is predictable, yes, and engaging, and Neeson is very good in the role, giving the character a well-roundedness that has not been part of his repertoire in recent years. This crime thriller may have a few too many ideas in its head, but it’s the type of genre film that tries hard to give everyone a bit of what they want, so you can’t help but root for the character.
And yes, as I go into another film comparison reference, Neeson’s later filmography is like when in Get Shorty Delroy Lindo tells Harry Zimm he has seen a better film about teeth and Absolution certainly has its faults. It’s not exactly original, predictable, and even intentionally convoluted at times, but this is a well-made thriller for fans of the genre, crime, or Neeson’s post-2010 filmography, which is somber and reflective enough to be worth a mild recommendation on top of it’s genre trappings.
You can watch Liam Neeson in Absolution on November 1st only in theaters
