The Marksman

My love for Liam Neeson knows no bounds - no matter how many mediocre movies he stars in, I will always watch the next one, in hopes that maybe my expectations will be subverted and I will be treated to a good film. Unfortunately, in the last few years, Mr. Neeson has starred in a string of mediocre movies. "Taken 3" is bad beyond description, mainly due to its atrocious editing style. "Cold Pursuit" attempted to go the dark comedy route, and in my opinion, missed its mark. "Honest Thief" was painfully banal, filled with stilted acting and a noticeable lack of action. And now we have "The Marksman," another entry in the mediocre Liam Neeson movie genre.

"The Marksman" is less of an action thriller and more of a drama, and that's not inherently bad. However, the movie boasts an astounding lack of suspense and tension throughout, plodding along from scene to scene until the inevitable final confrontation - which to the film's credit, is exciting. However, before you have the pleasure of watching that, you have to sit through a long, slow, road-trip style adventure, that lacks any type of thrill. Sure, you'll find one or two intermittent "action" scenes during the course of the movie, but these scenes barely contain any worthwhile action. There is a poorly filmed fistfight that lasts about 10 seconds, as well as a mild getaway type of scenario that our hero has to escape from, and that's about it.

Because of its lack of action, the main draw of "The Marksman" is its actors, namely Liam Neeson and Jacob Perez. Liam Neeson is good with what the script has him do, and I enjoyed his character. A previous member of the Marine Corp, Liam's character, Jim, struggles with alcohol, and is unapologetically atheist, which I found interesting for a character in a mainstream film. While I was originally opposed to watching a movie with a child actor in it, because of how bad child actors usually are, Jacob Perez was, to my surprise, pretty good. He could pull off emotion when he needed to, but mostly he was likeable, and it was enjoyable to watch him and Liam interact. There was some good comedy throughout, and some interesting conversations between the two characters, but that leads me into some more negatives.

Unfortunately, for a movie that is so dialogue heavy, a lot of the dialogue was very boring. There were so many opportunities for the characters to argue or engage in a verbal battle because of their own respective beliefs and morals, but the script took the easy way out it seems, instead employing a large use of exposition. Additionally, for a movie that takes place on the road, it doesn't look very good. The cinematography and directing is very basic, almost as if this was originally a made for television film that at the last minute the studios decided to release in theatres.

When the action starts, it is exciting, specifically the battle at the end. Liam pulls off some badass moves, and he puts his rifle to work. However, at this point the movie was too little, too late, and I was so disengaged that I was more looking forward for it to end. In case it wasn't clear - I still love Liam Neeson, and I'll never stop watching his movies. However, at the end of "The Marksman," I almost found myself asking if I should even bother anymore.

This is only the second film by director Robert Lorenzo. Who's he? Exactly. He is best known as an assistant director and producer of mostly Clint Eastwood films and some great ones like Mystic River and Million Dollar Baby. His first solo film is Trouble with the Curve where the main role is played, surprisingly, by Clint Eastwood himself. I really liked that movie. The difference between this and this film is the script, this time he wrote it himself and it is not good at all. It is often predictable, one-way, and uneven. Overall though, I can't judge the film with Liam Neeson where he plays himself badly. He will turn 69 this year, and he is still making films like this. I call this a typical Liam Neeson movie, if you've watched one in the last ten years, you've watched it all. A gloomy man with a difficult and vulnerable past who does not look for troubles but they find him, and he possesses special skills that he is forced to use. The good thing about movies like this is that you know you're going to get what you expected, and all of those movies are good or very good, they won't disappoint you. Same thing with this movie. If you're going to look for holes in the script or criticize the characters, then this is not the movie for you. If you're looking for a movie that will entertain you or take a break from your commitments for a hundred minutes, and you're a fan of Mr. Neeson like me then I can definitely recommend this movie to you.

Many of the critical comments (and the relatively low rating) seem to revolve around the film not meeting a viewer's expectations. Fair enough, but it just underscores the flawed premise of the imdb ratings, which have grown increasingly unreliable. This film doesn't break new ground, but it is solid entertainment. Doesn't have enough action to make it an action thriller? Too bad. Taken on its own merits, it's watchable, reasonably compelling, and has great scenery. Liam Neeson is always good, and the kid and villain are quite good.

Liam Neeson's talent is wasted here. The story points are so predictable, with some being stupid. For someone who is alert to his surroundings (the hero lives on a border town), Liam's character never gave a thought as to how the bad guys keep ending up where they are. And to burn the cartel money while still basically on the run and the hero not having much money (he hasn't paid his mortgage for 6 months)!!?... Plain loco moves.

Jim Hanson (Liam Neeson) has a shrinking property on the American Mexican border. The bank is foreclosing on what's left of his property including the hill where he spread his late wife's ashes. Her medical treatments had drained their life savings. He often finds illegals crossing his property. One day, he comes across Rosa and her son Miguel. They're on the run from the Mexican cartel. Jim gets into a gun battle and kills one of the cartel gunmen. Rosa is killed. Eventually, Jim is on the run with Miguel. Jim's stepdaughter Sarah Pennington (Katheryn Winnick) is a border agent.

This needs a few script changes including several situations during the final confrontation. There are some bad old fashion holdouts with the ending. Jim would never lay down his gun. As soon as that happens, both him and the kid would be killed. The biggest change I would make is to get rid of the money. It muddies Jim's motivation in helping Miguel. It would also heighten the danger by taking away a resource. In addition, Jim should have used the money to buy a car. The bad guys know the car and he knows the bad guys know it after the corrupt cop. It's also shot up to heck and on its last legs. Another change is Miguel's declaration that he wants to go home. Here's the deal. The kid is written as a real smart character. He wouldn't be dumb enough to want to go home where he can expect certain death. Overall, I like this lone marine who wants to do the right thing and Liam Neeson playing it. The script for this simplistic story has a few flaws that needs cleaning up.