It stars Liam Neeson, Dan Stevens, David Harbour, and Boyd Holbrook. The movie's lean plot, a wealth of action and Neeson's commanding presence made it a surprise hit and it received two sequels. As the body count goes up, he must use unreliable witnesses and gut intuition to try to catch the murderers. Instead, the other two tortured and killed her. A shootout between Matt and a trio of street punks leaves a bartender dead (shot in the chest point-blank with a shotgun). After a table-turning fight, Scudder overpowers and tasers Albert. Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Ray is shot, he begs Albert to treat his wounds. A Walk Among The Tombstones'movie finale sees Scudder and Kenny tracking down kidnapper Albert after the gunfight, with the latter having killed wounded partner Ray. Kenny asks Scudder to help him find his wifes killers. After Albert and Ray arrive at their place, TJ sneaks out of the van. He finds him in a hospital one day after a street gang beat down and learns that TJ has sickle cell anemia. The only surprise is that this most primitive kind of homophobia now occurs in the context of a big budget movie geared to mainstream tastes--such as pressing the usual race/feminist buttons same as formulaic TV shows. For one thing, Scudder plays only a peripheral role an action-movie no-no. I think he does what he can with what he's got, but this is yet another two hours of Liam Neeson psyching out the baddies over the phone and then ultimately solving problems with his gun. And the film as a whole winds up as a tricky balance between the two modes, one that doesnt always work (read our review) but is nonetheless admirable, particularly in an era when thoughtfulness usually plays second fiddle to explosions. Still, he thinks about what might have happened if hed not been drinking just before. Though its never specifically cited, the Serenity Prayer God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference is a controlling force. These perverse goblins represent the return of the socially repressed. And there I would leave it if not for that botched climax. ), although it did have its druggy charms. The camera also examines photographs of a topless woman who is in the middle of having sex. What does this movie have in store? And what happens next changes dramatically from Blocks book. Albert inspects the money and discovers some were counterfeit. There is also a large portion of Scudders detective work in the book that involves utilizing a pair of hackers to get into NYNEX (with laptops, external modems, and acoustic couplers if you want to get an idea of how technologically ancient Blocks book is) to uncover phone logs for him, which Frank rightly jettisons, as its a lot of tech talk and not that cinematic. Read on to uncover the details. Unlicensed. Read our extensive list of rules for more information on other types of posts like fan-art and self-promotion, or message the moderators if you have any questions. Most dates on his world tour have been canceled. He eventually kills him with a gunshot to the head. While the streetwise TJ (Astro) does appear in the film, the character is presented as someone Scudder happens to come across while doing research at the library. Its easy to see why a major studio wouldnt necessarily get behind a movie about a former alcoholic ex-cop turned private investigator, whose girlfriend is a prostitute, who helps a drug dealer find the men who killed his wife, and then has the dealer gruesomely kill the criminal. He likes sitting in bars drinking coffee alongside unsavory characters. Didn't see one posted, so I figured I'd make one. Seeing the trailers earlier this summer, I got chills at the darkness and mystery the tale promised. Steve McQueen has created a new genre: Hate Noir. Portraits of Kennys wife show her naked in several poses, some of them revealing full-frontal nudity. After realizing Landau's wife is bedridden, they prepare to leave for a new target. Please click the link below to receive your verification email. We see their body parts, wrapped in plastic and paper, in the back of a car, in a dumpster, on the grounds of a graveyard and floating in a pond. Nothing more, nothing less. Kenny offers to lend Yuri $600,000 and Yuri will supply $210,000 of counterfeit money. When Matt first meets TJ at the public library, the boy thinks the grizzled guy wants to molest him. Starring: Liam Neeson, Dan Stevens, David Harbour. For some reason, Neeson and Frank have decided to give Scudder a New Yawk accent, though that hurts less than it might since its always slipping. Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife.Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife.Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife. In fact, after at first leaving a killers fate to vigilante justice, Matt realizes he has to turn back and bring the man to the legal authorities instead. They be putting the money in the trunk an sittin up front, so they aint even gone look in the back. Youd cross the street in life if you saw him coming. Probably drugs. It contains a mix of suspense, thriller and neo-noir elements. Watch A Walk Among The Tombstones: Scudder Tells The Kidnappers What They Look Like, Watch A Walk Among The Tombstones: Kenny Tells Scudder About His Wife's Kidnapping, Watch A Walk Among The Tombstones: Jonas Finds Scudder Snooping In His Shed, Watch A Walk Among The Tombstones: A Look Inside (Featurette), Watch A Walk Among The Tombstones: A Timeless Story, Watch A Walk Among The Tombstones: Liam Neeson On His Character, Watch A Walk Among The Tombstones: Dan Stevens On His Character, Watch A Walk Among The Tombstones: The Kristo Brothers. The haunted title of A Walk Among the Tombstones suggests that one's bigoted reflexes are common, lying just beneath the surface. He is asked by a drug dealer to find the men who kidnapped his wife. Its a bit of a clunky change from the book, and that seems to be Franks way of explaining the otherwise unlikely relationship between a much older white man and a black teenager. And this makes him a much more complicated character than the loner private investigator of Franks film. Matt Scudder used to be a cop. Cheers! Scudder gives him a phone so that TJ can reach him if he needs anything. As presented in the film, Scudder is an ex-cop and recovering alcoholic. If so, that was just his rationalization, he was likely going to kill her anyway. The killers buy a guy drinks to better pump him for information. But he knew straight away that this Kenny Kristo fella wasnt gonna call any cops. And he left him barely alive in the basement along with his dead partner in crime. Instead, in Blocks book, the finale is much more gruesome. Deadpan Snarker: When Scudder remarks that the duo cut Yuri's daughter's fingers, he dryly and mockingly responds they did so before a deal had . But then I thought, TJ, this aint no movie, an you too young to die. TJ. Whats there now is not just different from the novel, it also features a recitation woven through the action of all 12 AA steps, which just seems weird. The two kidnappers, Ray and Albert, surveil the home of Yuri Landau, another drug trafficker. People are afraid of all the wrong things. This Article is related to: Features and tagged A Walk Among The Tombstones, Feature, Features. That's the problem with A Walk Among the Tombstones: Ray and Albert are gay bogeymen who can be hissed and booed without thinking. Your AMC Ticket Confirmation# can be found in your order confirmation email. Two armed men come in and kill the bartender. Set in 1999, the film follows a retired cop turned private investigator Matthew Scudder being dragged into a kidnapping/murder case. Blood covers a kitchen floor and walls, and somebody bleeds out on a stairway. Actress Ruth Wilson (Luther) filmed a major supporting role that was later cut as it was felt Scudder needed to be alone. Cinemark Once Scudder questions him and he tells Scudder what happened, he's worried they'll find out and do the same to him as they did to their victims. He cries to Albert that he has never been wounded before. I feel like Liam Neeson hasn't been given much to work with since the success of "Taken." Maybe I missed something. *Sorry, there was a problem signing you up. There is also an underlying thread of race in the book, as Blocks dealers are Lebanese Kenan and Pete Khoury. THE FILM: Despite having a run-of-the-mill story, A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES has some of best character work that Liam Neeson has done in a long time. Ray and Albert (portrayed by David Harbour and Adam David Thompson) are not just the bad guys; they're porn-corrupted boyfriends--evildoers and gynophobic creeps who abduct women then perform mutilations on them before killing them. They probably were going to kill the last girl as well, but decided to go for the ransom instead. But that film's concept of social and sexual loners was problematic--and way too subtle (which may have inspired Demme to immediately follow up with the gay-affirming protest film Philadelphia). The Magical Last Hours of the Flix Gonzlez-Torres Show. 2014 | Maturity Rating: 16+ | 1h 54m | Thriller Movies. Yet Hollywood seems to focus on the latter, not deviating from the stoic man who can rip armies of murderers asunder and come out swinging. By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie. Terms and Policies Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Wanted to know if others saw it/thought about it. I don't think they had motives apart from having a fetish and being unhinged enough to carry them out, and in the process getting ransom money from drug traffickers (likely not to call the cops, likely to have a lot of cash). This was probably inevitable. All rights reserved. [13] On October 18, 2013, Block tweeted that he had seen the film and revealed producers were aiming for a September 2014 release. Please reference Error Code 2121 when contacting customer service. Neeson turns in a solid performance, backed by a good supporting cast that features Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey) as a sympathetic drug trafficker and a couple of really vicious bad guys. Matt Scudder. The bartender is killed by two armed men who enter the room. murders Ray, he's captured by Matthew and tells him he was going to sit down to a meal before disposing of Ray's body. It should have been avoided in A Walk Among the Tombstones, in which a pair of gay serial killers are hunted down by Liam Neeson playing Matthew Scudder, an ex-cop turned private investigator. [4], The film earned $428,000 from Thursday night from 1,918 theaters, and $4.7 million from 2,712 theaters on its opening day. He reads about victims Marie Gotteskind and Leila Andresen. He gave up his brother to a DEA investigator who was later targeted by the killers. When Scudder reluctantly agrees to help a heroin trafficker (Dan Stevens) hunt down the men who kidnapped and then brutally murdered his wife, the PI learns that this . Its clear from the sunless palette and the measured, one-thing-after-another pacing that Frank loves Blocks work, and that goes a long way. A day later, an anonymous tip was called in and the cops brought Ray to the hospital where he lived for two more days, before dying. How viewers can change the meaning of a great artists work. (He also tithes a percentage of his fees to various churches.) Loved the detective's sidekick, quite a funny and interesting character. Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife. Albert suddenly tries to strangle him from behind with a metal wire. The plot is realistic and the viewer follows Scudder investigation. Matt Scudder: I do favors for people, and in return, they give me gifts. The Hard Case Crime tie-in novel is also in stores. Oh, hopefully more people contribute to this discussion. Boyd Holbrook is eloquently jittery as his addict brother, Olafur DarriOlafsson has two vivid scenes as a graveyard attendant, and what can you say about David Harbours tauntingly demonic Ray? Kenny drinks hard liquor as well. Neither is it some kind of man-against-the-monsters supernatural thriller like the title might suggest. In fact, at first its hard to see where tombstones fit in at all. Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! One of the key relationships Scudder has is with Elaine Mardell, a professional working girl for over two decades, who he met on the job. Privacy Policy [22] Manohla Dargis in The New York Times called it "one of those rare cinematic offerings: intelligent pulp" but also noted that the film "can be tough to watch, particularly its fleeting images of tortured women". Scudder, then, is much different from Neesons other bad-guy-hunter, Bryan Mills, in the Taken movies. That seemed like the most implausible part of the movie. After he delivered the ransom as instructed, the kidnappers directed him to a car containing her dismembered body. Really was a bit of a shock and even then they didn't milk it for all its worth (a few Y2K references here, a subtle WTC in the final pan out.). While the film is more of a thriller than an action movie, a few setpieces were added like the graveyard shootout and the final fight to beef up the action quota. Was on the edge on my seat at least 3/4s of the movie's time length. Nowadays, hes something of a private detective. Maybe hes genetically driven to do what good cops, sober cops, just naturally do: help people. [18], On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 68% based on 165 reviews, with an average rating of 6.20/10. A Walk Among the Tombstones doesn't entirely transcend its genre clichs, but it does offer Liam Neeson one of his more compelling roles in recent memory, and that's often enough. Influencers: Profiles of a Partnership 2022, How to Pitch Stories and Articles to IndieWire, IndieWire's Chief Film Critic Eric Kohn Picks the Best Movies of 2020 -- Year in Review, 'Adventure Time' Is Slowly Going Off the Air, And Everyone's Moving On, Oscar Voters Go International For Best Live Action Short Picks, though the box office suggests there might not be. A film adaptation of Blocks novel had been in development for several years with a script from Scott Frank. Parents, get practical information from a biblical worldview to help guide media decisions for your kids! A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014) Plot Showing all 4 items Jump to: Summaries (3) Synopsis (1) Summaries Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife. . We also see a killer wrap the wire around a womans breast. He can still see the little 8-year-old girl he killed. The one teen girl who survives has several of her fingers chopped off. 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