The Commuter

Let´s go back 10 years from now. The year of 2008 may not ring any big bells at this moment, of why we should think about this year. But there was actually one movie that came out this year, that changed action films on a completely different level. The film is called Taken, and turned out to be a massive hit in cinemas. Legendary Irish actor Liam Neeson turned out to be the action star, we all dreamed of seeing again. To see Liam Neeson kick ass in Paris, France, turned out to be a really good idea. The film may not be original in any way, but that was not the point with Taken. The point was, if you mess with Liam Neeson, your ass is terminated. And sometimes, that is all you need to have fun in a cinema, or on blu ray. Taken worked so well as an action film, i remember calling it one of the better action films at that time. Since i have followed Liam Neeson´s movie career for a very long time, i have seen him in a lot of really good films, both from the past and closer to present day. The one thing i really appreciate with Liam is that he can basically take on any genre, or any character, and he can deliver solid performances. With classic films such as Schindler´s List, Rob Roy, Michael Collins and many more, there are plenty of films i could recommend. I can´t forget to mention the 2011 film The Grey, a really solid action survival drama, you should pick up on dvd or blu ray. Since Taken was such a big hit, Liam continued the action thriller franchise, and actually made 2 films, Unknown and Run All Night with the same director, Jaume Collet-Serra. I enjoyed both of these films for different reasons, especially because they were both well made action thrillers from a classical genre perspective. I was reading online about upcoming movies during 2017, and came across an article about Liam Neeson´s upcoming film The Commuter. What striked me first was that he was working again with director Jaume Collet-Serra, something that made me pleased. Since i know they have done a good job together in the past, i was hoping that the chemistry would work, this third time around. I also noticed that The Commuter included some other really good actors as well, so of course i had to visit the local cinema. After all these years, is Liam Neeson still the king of traditional action thrillers, or is The Commuter the downfall of his long respected career ?

Michael MacCauley ( Liam Neeson ) is a hard working insurance salesman, who have worked hard for the same company for many years. One day, he finds out that he is fired. His world falls apart, because he have so many bills to pay, and a family to support. Unless he finds a new job, everything will fall apart. On the way home on board a commute train, a woman approach Michael. Her name is Joanna ( Vera Farmiga ), and she have a proposition. In a bathroom, on board this commute train, there is an hidden envelope with a lot of money. At first Michael think this is a joke, that someone is playing with him. But when he realise that she is serious, he begin to think about it. He needs all the money he can get, since he lost his job. But there is a catch, once he takes that money, he will get even more money, if he kills one person on the commute train. If he does not kill this person, his family will be killed. Now, Michael must make a choice, will he kill this chosen person to save his family, or will he try to find a way out of this complicated situation ?

If you have seen many of Liam Neeson´s previous action thrillers in the past, i don´t think The Commuter will change his catalogue too much. However, what The Commuter does a bit different, is that the film have a slightly different twist than just action scenes, and fighting. The main character is actually given a chance to do something unexpected, and that makes this film more interesting. Would you kill a stranger on a train for a lot of money, when you know you really need the money ? Would you be able to do this, and just walk away as nothing never happened ? When you think about Liam Neesons character´s position, he is close to being retired, he lost his job and he might be too old to find another job. And the bills are growing, so what do you do ? The plot is of course nothing original, but what makes this film work ( for the most part ), is that i enjoy the character Michael of Liam Neeson. He seems to be a gentle husband / father, who wants to make sure his family survives. Of course the situation changes throughout the film, as he may be having regrets, if he really should go this far. Liam Neeson is of course always an actor who knows how to make great characters. I would not say The Commuter is one of his better films, but if you enjoy action thrillers, i think this might be appreciated. It is really nice to see both actors Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson in this film. I would imagine most of you recognize their names, especially from both The Conjuring movies. They don´t have any scenes together in The Commuter, but i enjoy their characters, and their screen presence in this film. I hope we will see them again soon. I really appreciate to see legendary actor Sam Neil in this film as Captian Hawthorne, i just wish he had more screen time. The scenes he does appear in, works for me. Other good performances in The Commuter, is of course actor Andy Nyman as Tony, and Ella-Rae Smith as the shy Sofia. The film switches in the end, and become more of an old school traditional action thriller, and this is where i have a few issues. While the film was pretty clever in the beginning, it should have stayed there instead of going into safe mode. The plot could have been developed differently. Director Jaume Collet - Serra have made a film, that may not bring anything new to the table, but clearly knows how to use Liam Neeson in the category he fits into. In the end, i enjoyed The Commuter, especially because of Liam Neeson. He still can kick ass, and he knows how to make solid action thrillers. By the way, the sound effects in the fights, are really good. So my advice is, give The Commuter a chance, if you enjoy old school action films. 

Rating: DDD