A Walk Among the Tombstones

Do not expect an action flick just because it’s Liam Neeson. The only action scene takes place in the first minutes. This film is closer in spirit to Joel Schumacher’s 8MM, but it’s afraid to become too dark and heavy. For incomprehensible reasons, it lightens up and mocks the aura around the main bad guys, who should chill you to the bone. Philosophizing over guilt and redemption does not work very well either – in one of the final scenes it sticks out like a sore thumb. Neeson is OK, but Ólafsson is the best, albeit in a smaller role (he was also the best in Walter Mitty). [Cinemark 18, Howard Hughes Promenade, LA] (20/09/2014)

A Walk Among the Tombstones is a noir film for people who don't know all that much about noir films and badly want for them to be like this. I don't hold any major grudge against it, and after the prologue (a smoke-filled morning bar, haggard bartender in the background, the shot through the coat, a scruffy Neeson and his drunkard’s dance on the stairs) I even found myself thinking I might love the film, but then the individual flaws began to line up behind each other at an increasingly less tolerable frequency. There are an awful lot of unnecessary characters who are given way too much space, a lot of the actors are obviously quite badly miscast (Dan Stevens, Sebastian Roché), and there are some merciless screenwriting perversions in an attempt to justify their existence in the film ("Dani here has a sniper rifle, but he's short-sighted, so give it to the junkie here who goes to AA meetings with Neeson and has been weaving her way into the frame so we can get some closure"). Besides, the early unmasking of the central killer duo made it impossible for me to stop thinking about Cronenberg's A History of Violence, which worked incredibly better with this motif. (17/02/2015)

A perfect, old school detective movie with a precise Neeson, perverted kidnappers and a cold, sodden atmosphere. These non-digital guy’s movies are few and far between and I’m glad that Scott Frank was able to resurrect this genre even in today’s world. A gloomy mood at the end of the millennium, full of junkies and cut-up whores, an ingenious story from the pen of Lawrence Block, all spiced with the crackly, hoarse, Irish telephone voice of a former drunk? I want a sequel! (31/10/2014)

A well-made action film bordering on a film noir that keeps up its suspenseful atmosphere from start to finish. Although there are fewer gunfights compared to other Neeson films, it’s not a bad thing in this case. The film has a good atmosphere and steers clear of unnecessary sentimentality and pathos, so I greatly enjoyed it. (11/07/2016)

This film will remind you of the golden nineties, as it offers a perfect noir atmosphere that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Scott Frank was previously a name I associated with quality screenwriting, but here, he also took on directing, and the result was worthwhile. Besides the initial action sequence, which was quite substantial, the film doesn’t offer many action-packed moments; on the other hand, it succeeds in depicting characters and creating a fantastic atmosphere. Liam Neeson is truly born for such roles; here he plays an aging detective who takes on a case that isn’t particularly pleasant. The main duo of villains might have been revealed a bit too early, and I agree with most people on that; it would have been better to play around more with their unknown identity and then surprise the audience. From this perspective, it can be considered a downside. However, I liked the cinematography and the script that was without any major plot holes. The ending was worth it, and well-executed; those expecting a one-on-one fight will be satisfied. A quality detective film. I give it 76%. (19/04/2018)