But it’s also that we’ve seen this Neeson so many times before (Innocuous-looking ordinary guy with a particular set of skills? Check. In part, that’s because ex-cop MacCauley has had the life beaten out of him by the corporate life (watch for a not-so-subtle, and very literal, middle finger to Goldman Sachs).
The Commuter is exactly the kind of post- Taken aging-action-star part that Neeson could do in his sleep, and while he’s not exactly dozing through the script, it lacks his normal grizzled fire and drive.
Even as the final act ramps up, the action seems to lose steam, and the torrent of red herrings and obvious dead ends just blocks the tracks.
An increasingly desperate but focused MacCauley whittles down the train full of suspects with some surprisingly elegant solutions, as all the while the stakes rise.īut there’s a squeaking wheel that just gets more distracting, as the coincidences and seeming godlike foresight of Joanna’s unseen bosses become an increasing strain on credulity. He sticks rigorously to the central conceit of a real-time trip from New York’s Grand Central Station, out along the Metro-North line to suburban Cold Spring (he even gets the departure time and trip duration pretty much spot on), and that central sealed bottle sequence is by far the most fun element.
It’s fitting that Neeson reunites with director Collet-Serra for this, as the pair last worked together on 2011’s equally implausible identity switch thriller Unknown: Fortunately, Collet-Serra knows how to keep this kind of material on the rails.
That seems a plausibility-stretching coincidence, but nothing is by accident in the first produced script by Byron Willinger and Philip de Blasi. Of course, the theoretical is real, as he is challenged to hunt down that mysterious person before the train reaches its destination: a seemingly impossible task, but then he is an ex-cop. Yet down-on-his-luck insurance agent Michael MacCauley (Neeson) commits that error when a fellow commuter line passenger called Joanna (Farmiga) sits down and poses a question: If he could do one tiny thing, one insignificant act, that would change another person’s life but have no consequence for him, would he do it? Actually, the consequence is that he would get $100,000, which MacCauley desperately needs since he just got fired and his son is heading to college. At least, try to tell a good story, with believable characters.If Alfred Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train taught us anything, it’s to never engage in hypotheticals. Neeson hasn't lost it as an "Expendables"-style action man, but all of these films could not be more uninspired if they tried. If you enjoy this kind of film, by all means, see it. 'The Commuter' is mainly forgettable and typically formulaic. They didn't even start talking about his future at the company, and even then, it wouldn't require such intense camera shots. There is a moment where Neeson's character is just sat opposite his employer at his desk, and, for some reason, we get unnecessary and extreme close-up shots of Neeson's face, even though the conversation they were having did not require such an editing skill. But, the odd direction and uncomfortable editing style make this film a very difficult experience. Neeson does a good job here, as well as the supporting cast. Most of the characters we come across are intentionally one-dimensional, yes, but everything the plot builds up to is basically trying to surpass expectations and predictability. The film ponders along trying to reveal a secret about one of the passenger's identities, and how integral they are to the plot. This leads to Michael receiving a phone-call, and he is told to carry out some dangerous tasks, or his family get killed (what a surprise!). Feeling discouraged by what has happened, he takes his usual trip on the same train to a long journey, until he meets a woman who claims that she is an expert on body-language and overall human behavior, and she tells him some secrets about what's on the train, and what he's going to do. In 'The Commuter', he plays Michael MacCauley, an insurance salesman who pretty much is being let go from his company. In 'The Commuter', he plays Michael MacCauley, an insurance Another disposable action thriller where Liam Neeson plays an everyday man whose told that his family is in danger, and that he must carry out a dangerous task that he reluctantly agrees to only to ensure the safety of his family. Another disposable action thriller where Liam Neeson plays an everyday man whose told that his family is in danger, and that he must carry out a dangerous task that he reluctantly agrees to only to ensure the safety of his family.