Film Review - Run All Night

Man On a Mission

Film: Run All Night

Cast: Liam Neeson, Ed Harris,
Directed by: Jaume Collet-Serra
Duration: 1 hr 55 mins
Rating: *  *  *

Who would have thought that Liam Neeson will become an action hero of this mould in this phase of his career? The 62 year old may not have the six packs and the built of someone who can beat a dozen guys to pulp yet, post Taken (2008) most of his action films have made to the ‘entertaining’ grade and Run All Night is no different.

This film is the third collaboration between the actor and director Jaume Collet-Serra (Unknown and Non-Stop being the other two) and they both seem to be in familiar territory. The story set during Christmas eve has Neeson play Jimmy Conlon, a hitman who has many crosses to bear, working for Sean, a gangster (Ed Harris).  He has committed many crimes in the past and now he is loner of sorts and his estranged son Michael (Joel Kinnaman) doesn’t want the grandfather’s shadow to fall on his kids. Mike is exactly the opposite – he is a doting father and a hardworking family man while Jimmy is mostly drowning his sorrows.

Meanwhile, Sean’s son gets on the wrong side of some Albanian drug dealers and Mike becomes a witness to shooting and suddenly everything spirals out of control. Jimmy has to help Mike and his family who are being hunted down – from there on, we get to see a fair deal of action, car chases, shootout in an apartment building and corrupt cops with the odd one lending a helping hand.

There is little doubt that the character of Jimmy has been specially stitched for Liam Neeson and he has the ability to pull it off.  He gets all is emotions right, whether it is of a whisky guzzler, a man looking for redemption or someone who will pull all stops to protect his family even if it means blindly pumping bullets. Even though he is a killer Jimmy is a likable character because he is played by Neeson.

Not quite sure what was the thought having those handheld cameras and the super fast cutting even during ordinary conversations at the beginning.  They should have allowed the story to build up the pace (which eventually it does) rather than forcefully resorting to such editing techniques.

All said and seen, Run All Night is a smooth ride, at no point did I feel bored and that has pretty much become the hallmark of a good film these days. 

Published in The Navhind Times, Goa on 29th March 2015

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Film Review - Baby

Spy Games

Film: Baby

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Danny Denzongpa, Kay Kay Menon

Directed by: Neeraj Pandey

Duration: 2 hrs 40 mins

Rating: * * 1 / 2

Neeraj Pandey’s Baby belongs to that rare genre of espionage thrillers although now-a-days there isn’t much of differentiation between those films and ones that tackle the issue of terrorism. Baby offers a mixed bag, by and large it remains predictable for most parts but the redeeming factor is the finale that is reminiscent of Argo, but keeps you engrossed all the same. That may not be the only film that Baby reminds you of, there is also a bit of Nikhil Advani’s D-Day in the storyline.

Akshay Kumar plays Ajay, an elite member of an intelligence unit called Baby which is formed to foil and counter terror attacks in the country. It opens with an action sequence in the heart of Istanbul which is nicely shot but has little meaning in the context of the film. The scene then shifts to India where a dreaded terrorist Bilaal (Kay Kay Menon) manages to escape from the police in broad day light. Meanwhile the intelligence unit learns that some attacks are being planned by the Lashkar group with a Mullah (Rasheed Naz) being the mastermind. 

The trail leads first to Nepal and from there to the climax in the middle-east where Ajay and his team (Rana Dagubatti, Anupam Kher) manage to catch the big fish. 

The problem with the screenplay is that it takes too long, almost the whole of first half to establish itself. The politics of the films and the portrayal of Muslims is also way too simplistic. Instead of seriously addressing the issue, Pandey brushes it with very broad strokes – he was better off leaving them alone rather than delving on them in this fashion.

The action is quite well choreographed, whether in Nepal, Turkey, India or the climax it ranks right up there. Particularly enjoyable is a fight scene between a lady agent (Tapsee Pannu) and the rogue dealer (Sushant Singh) in a hotel room.  Since our hero is so invincible, we know exactly how it is going to end but to Pandey’s credit, the climax though predictable, is riveting.

Of the cast, the ever reliable Danny Denzongpa adds a lot of credibility to his character as Intelligence chief. The supporting actors, Anupam Kher, Rana Dagubatti and Kay Kay Menon are aptly cast. It is so refreshing to see Akshay Kumar play a role that he pulls off so well rather than those mundane comedy films that he does so often. 

Published in The Navhind Times on 25th January 2015

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