Run All Night (2015) User Reviews

One of Neeson's best action movies. Gripping, gritty and enjoyable stuff.

[Beard_Of_Serpico · 8/10 · 14 April 2020]

Liam neeson plays Jimmy Conlon, an aging and borderline alcoholic mob hitman who is forced to protect his son from his former boss Shawn Maguire played by the always excellent Ed Harris. It's a satisfying blend of character drama and gritty, violent action. One of the things i really liked was nothing was overly spectacular and silly which gives the movie a more gritty and realistic feel. The action is quick, brutal and not glamorized and the dialogue feels like things real people would say during regular conversation as well, it gets annoying in movies sometimes when characters are spouting one liners like clowns.

Liam Neeson is solid as always and believable as a hard man who is passed his prime but will kill to protect his son even though he knows there's no way it's going to end happy for himself. He's either going to die or spend the rest of his life in prison but he doesn't care as long as his boy is safe. When he lays a guy out flat with one punch with a broken nose and missing teeth you know his character is more than capable of doing it. The story isn't really anything you haven't seen before but it's a well made movie with good performances and the action scenes are filmed in a simple no frills style with no annoying shakey cam. Definitely a good time for fans of Neeson, Ed Harris and tough action thrillers.

Great action film

[ahbindare · 8/10 · 18 March 2015]

One of the better action movies I've seen in a while. Great characters - great acting and interesting story line. I really liked this film and I don't understand why this movie does not get better reviews. unlike a lot of the popular glitzy action films, this one leaves a memory of what it was really about. The camera work was great and incorporated some of the best and most believable action scenes I have experienced. The language was fitting and not overpopulated with Fbombs. The story line is easy to follow. The soundtrack is appropriate without a lot of unnecessary crashing and banging, or a way over the top, or overpowering soundtrack. Definitely a good film.

A immensely satisfying blend of gripping mob drama and thrilling action setpieces that is easily Liam Neeson's most credible work in recent years

[moviexclusive · 7/10 · 12 March 2015]

Before you dismiss the latest Liam Neeson action movie 'Run All Night' as yet another iteration of 'Taken', let us reassure you that there is much more to this mob thriller than meets the eye. True, Neeson plays a former man of violence with a 'particular set of skills' who is forced to employ them in order to save his family, but that's about where the similarities end. Indeed, while that franchise never quite had any ambition than as a glorified B-movie, this latest team-up between Neeson and his 'Unknown' and 'Non-Stop' collaborator Jaume Collet- Serra proves itself as an impressive amalgamation of the Oscar- nominated dramatic skills on which his earlier career was built on and his more recent kickassery.

Brad Inglesby's script starts by giving us a glimpse of Neeson after the fateful events of the titular evening – that is, lying in a forest and bleeding from a shotgun wound – before rewinding sixteen hours before to fill us in. As we soon learn, Neeson's Jimmy Conlon wasn't in a much better state before his most recent run-in with mob boss and childhood friend Shawn Maguire (Ed Harris) that had led to his current predicament. An alcoholic mocked by the denizens at the local pub for farting in his sleep, the former Brooklyn hit-man was once Shawn's trusty right-hand man, but has now been reduced to playing Santa at the latter's son's birthday party for quick cash, which he spends drowning his guilt over the people he has killed and the family he has alienated through the years.

As bad luck would have it, Jimmy's estranged son, Mike (Joel Kinnaman), who only wants to take care of his pregnant wife and two young kids and to have nothing to do with his father, stumbles upon Danny executing two Albanian drug dealers. When Danny turns up at Mike's house, Jimmy intervenes to save his son and ends up killing Danny, setting in motion the subsequent series of events which will see father and son move through New York City while being pursued by Danny's men – including a professional assassin named Price (Common) who has his own grudge with Jimmy – as well as crooked cops looking to stay on Shawn's payroll.

Rather than just skip to the chase, Collet-Serra and his screenwriter Inglesby invest in a more character-driven narrative than may be expected. A pivotal scene has Jimmy confessing to Danny's murder shortly after Shawn returns from the morgue to identify his son's body, which poignantly expresses not just one father's grief (and consequent thirst for revenge) from the death of his son but also another father's paternal instinct to protect his family by whatever means possible. Whereas 'Taken' (pardon the pun) the latter for granted, Collet-Serra wisely lets the polarising dynamic between Jimmy and Shawn define the conflict that ensues, giving both characters and their longstanding friendship turned brutal rivalry both shading and nuance.

Lest it be forgotten, Neeson and Harris are both accomplished actors in their own right, and both manage to find their characters' empathetic core. Collet-Serra understands Neeson's 'particular set of skills' in playing the fallible hero, and gives his lead actor space and breadth to explore his character's vulnerabilities and motivations – even bringing in an unbilled Nick Nolte to add patriarchal weight to the proceedings. Kinnaman doesn't get enough quiet scenes with Neeson for their father-son relationship to develop into something truly compelling, but the actors share a good rapport that give the action scenes added emotional texture.

And in that department, Collet-Serra doesn't disappoint. Reining in the hand-held shots that made the last 'Taken 3' an absolute nightmare to watch even on the big screen, Collet-Serra fashions a couple of impressive sequences that make full use of its New York locale. A thrilling cop-car chase through the streets of Brooklyn easily puts 'Taken 3's' highway chase to shame, while a high-rise apartment complex on fire provides a tense backdrop against which Jimmy and Mike attempt to protect a kid witness. There is also the iconic Madison Square Garden, which provides the scene for a daring escape right after a Rangers-Devils game, and heightens the Big Apple atmosphere while keeping the gritty noir-ish feel of the earlier scenes.

It is certainly tempting to see this as yet another attempt to cash in on Neeson's newfound action hero status, but 'Run All Night' distinguishes itself with some well-filmed setpieces to satisfy the adrenaline-hungry crowd while staying grounded with enough characterisation and good acting for its audience to be rooted with the characters on screen. It is also his best collaboration yet with Collet-Serra, who seems genuinely interested at making a movie tailored to the actor's strengths than simply cashing in on a fad. Even and especially if you were disillusioned with 'Taken 3', 'Run All Night' is a good, solid slab of macho entertainment that should wash away the bitter taste of that over-the-hill franchise.

Well thrilling Action movie

[Floated2 · 7/10 · 15 May 2017]

Liam Neeson, starring in his his now standard turn of several similar action thrillers. A man with a past given a chance to redeem himself with judicious amounts of crowd-pleasing violence. Perhaps it's unfair to say the Northern Irish actor could phone in this performance from anywhere in the world, as he does it so well, but one can understand those that criticize the actor for repeating himself, with the inevitable diminishing effect at the box office.

Run All Night deserves to be seen as more than just another Liam Neeson early-year actioner. It's a nasty movie with great pace and a strong spine thanks to those two prolific leads. Although it does have some flaws and may drag in between scenes, though as an action thriller it provides the necessary thrills and interest for the viewers.

Crossing that line (together)

[kosmasp · 7/10 · 10 September 2015]

Liam Neeson again has some skills that make him very dangerous. Drunk or not, do not mess with him or his loved ones ... This has a real anti-player in Ed Harris. Someone who can hold his own against Liam. The acting is superb, the action is more than decent. The thrill works and while there is a morality to it, it never challenges the tension it builds at any time.

It has it some story holes or logic errors or whatever you want to call them. But even they are kept at a minimum. I'm also glad this isn't a remake, because the title sounded like a french movie, but has nothing to do with that. Single components may feel familiar, but in the thriller genre it's tough to invent something completely new. So it's OK to copy things that worked ... like this movie does ...

Breathless Thriller

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 27 June 2015]

In New York, the decadent alcoholic Jimmy Conlon (Liam Neeson) is the former hit man known as Gravedigger. Jimmy is a lonely man and his only friend is the mobster Sean Maguire (Ed Harris) that was also his boss. Jimmy's estranged son Mike Conlon (Joel Kinnaman) is a former boxer that works as limousine driver and is married with children. Sean's son Danny Maguire (Boyd Holbrook) is an ambitious troublemaker. On the Christmas Day, Danny deals with Albanese drug dealers but Sean refuses to participate. Danny schedules a meeting with the men at home to give the money he had received back. Mike coincidently drives the two Albanese in the limousine and Danny kills them in his house. Then he hunts Mike down since he does not want eyewitnesses for what he did. Jimmy goes to Mike's house and saves his life killing Danny. Now Sean seeks revenge and puts a contract on Jimmy and Mike that are hunted down along the night by the mobsters, the hired hit man and the corrupt police officers. Sean does not want a deal and Jimmy's only chance to protect Mike and his family is the support of the honest Detective Harding (Vincent D'Onofrio) that has been on his tail for many years.

"Run All Night" is a breathless thriller with one of the best action actors of the present days, Liam Neeson, and the top-notch Ed Harris. The supporting cast is also great. The plot is well constructed with developed characters and non-stop action. The conclusion is predictable but Jimmy is a doomed character from the beginning and could not have a different fate. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Noite Sem Fim" ("Endless Night")

6.5/10

[Giacomo_De_Bello · 6/10 · 6 May 2015]

Fluently put together and entertaining enough for it not to be forgotten as easily as it could have been, yet it falls short in achieving both what it could have and what it promises to, that being a remarkable and unique action thriller.

All of the problems "Run All Night" has seem to tie in together and make just one big problem: it simply does not use its potential and it does not use it exactly because of the problems it has. Firstly it does not use its well defined characters to its advantage and ultimately even fails to stick to some. Moreover way to many times the film descends into ultra-generic territory: I was watching the film, entertained and time and time again what it seemed to be leading up to wasn't as interesting as I wanted it to be, it was a situation I had seen times and times again and I was repeatedly left asking myself "so that was all?". The director also hints at a very original eye for visuals, just as the whole movie hints at a better, more intriguing and surprising film, but ultimately both fail to the delver what they promised. The visual style and editing style had some brief brilliant moments, but for the majority falls into, again, ultra-generic and fast-cut distracting action scene. Way too many times I wondered why hadn't the director shot a scene in another way which could have made it incredibly and vastly more fascinating to watch.

That is not to say that there are many redeemable qualities. First and foremost there is genuine tension mostly because of the well rounded characters for whom I had a surprisingly positive emotional connection and didn't realize so until the end. Helping this is a fantastic cast that delivers the majority of the goods. Neeson is obviously charismatic, he isn't phoning it in, he is giving a heartfelt performance that definitely delivered. Ed Harris is in my opinion one of the best actors of history possibly and this is further proof that he simply can do no wrong, he has a presence on screen that is very hard to match. Even Kinnaman, whom I have been a critic of, is delivering a good enough performance. Lastly, the story doesn't ever realize its potential as I said, but it still makes for a very riveting premise that kept me hooked until the end, despite an overlong duration.

I had a good share of fun and excitement, but I was disappointed to see such a good opportunity ending up being another average film.

Not Your Run Of The Mill Liam Movie.... I'm Very Impressed

[poopiter · 9/10 · 19 March 2015]

I went to see this because I found out last minute that "It Follows" was only limited release and I'M GLAD I DID! When you go see "Taken 2" or "Walk Among the Tombstones" you expect crazy action which you definitely get with Run All Night. But what you're not expecting is above average story and acting. There was great suspense with solid characters that you start to care about. There's some larger than life feats that Liam pulls off as usual, but it's done well.

Giving it a 9 out of 10 might be a little high, but I feel it deserves bonus points for surprising the heck out of me and breaking the recent trend of over the top Liam movies.

Don't wait for video on this one; it's a wild ride for the theater.

Gritty And Predictable

[tspear-61831 · 6/10 · 19 June 2015]

The best part of "Run All Night" are the steely performances by Ed Harris and Joel Kinnaman.

Liam Neeson is solid but the previous two steal the show.

It is definitely worth a rental but not a purchase. The plot is predictable, but that's expected and doesn't derail from the entertainment value. It prevents us from becoming attached or emotionally invested in Kinneman's character's family; but we weren't really expecting to anyway were we? Fans of "Running Scared", "A History of Violence" and Kinnaman's show "The Killing" will enjoy this movie.

Liam Neesploitation!

[Coventry · 7/10 · 26 November 2018]

Few things in the present-day cinema business are as fascinating and remarkable as the sudden career change that Liam Neeson underwent since 2008! The charismatic Irish born actor has always been a tough guy, at least from the looks of it, but nevertheless he was mainly known and celebrated for his weighty and highbrowed roles, like in "Schindler's List", "Michael Collins" or "Les Misérables". But since 2008, with the release of the first "Taken", Neeson seems reborn as a hardcore-to-the-bone and authentically unhinged action hero! The "Taken" sequels, and other similarly themed and equally fast-paced action movies (like "Unknown", "Non-Stop" and "The Grey"), followed so quickly in the next ten years that we can now even almost speak of a spontaneous new sub-genre: Liam Neesploitation! "Run All Night", Neeson's third collaboration with director Jaume Collet-Serra in a row, is easily his best since the original "Taken", and it takes our protagonist back to his roots by depicting a heavy-drinking and embittered Irish ex-gangster. What makes the film even cooler is that Neeson is now surrounded by equally embittered compeers, like the underrated Vincent D'Onofrio, the sadly forgotten Bruce McGill and the always phenomenal Ed Harris. The difference between these old & experienced veterans and an ensemble cast existing of young hunks is that you genuinely believe them if they act like they don't care if they are going to die or not! Neeson is terrific as the emotionally tormented former hit man Jimmy Conlon, with real agony in his eyes and voice. Certain circumstances force him to kill the son of his best friend and patron Shawn Maguire, and the latter now swears that he's "coming after Jimmy's son Mike with everything he's got". Sit back and enjoy the wild mixture of car chases, virulent shootouts and raw duels.

Standard Gritty Bloodbath

[billygoat1071 · 6/10 · 13 March 2015]

The conceit of Run All Night is having Liam Neeson wander around the city, protecting his family as he beats up a set of bad guys in an entire night. It sounds like a pretty simple action experience that represents Neeson's action star career, but the story never allows to be that simple. The plot is so drowned with backstories that sometimes halts the fun it deserves. It also feels a little too long and most of the real pleasures are so reserved to make way for drama. There is joy when things get really violent and its best lead talents shine throughout making it entertaining enough, but there is nothing much left on screen but a cold standard revenge thriller.

The story has a pretty compelling setup, we are introduced to Jimmy and Shawn about their forgiving friendship until one of them crossed the line and begins threatening each other. This is a pretty long prologue, but for the good reasons to flesh out this tough, gritty world they are into; even before the actual bloodbath, the movie already offers enough amount of thrills. The best thing to say here is the movie is full of action; they are pretty violent, merciless, and driven with fine amount of suspense. But the plot keeps mattering their dramatic backstories, interrupting the fun that the film is supposed to be having. There just isn't momentum with this cat and mouse chase, even when we already understand their plight, we are still being introduced with new information, which loses the steam at the middle.

The plot is also too dumb to take seriously, but then it's all about the action, and again, it offers enough violence. The director continues to be stylish in his action, but once again, it's Liam Neeson who brings it to the table, and the movie has found a perfect competitor for him: Ed Harris. Both actors make their dialogue sound real threatening, which makes you wish it's all about them pointing guns at each other. The strongest moment of the film is basically their confrontation as now enemies. Too bad, more of the movie is Neeson telling his son what to do. The rest of the cast is alright, but it doesn't have the same appeal of the real stars of the film.

There are reasons to like Run All Night, but there are too many stories to tell that seems apart from what the movie has promised. This is basically just another Liam Neeson action movie, the only novelty it provides is giving him a perfect antagonist for him to share threat speeches back and forth. Most of it is just a thriller with the same rhythm: fight, sit down, explain and repeat. It's as typical as it gets, but the violence is appropriately grim for a revenge film. In the end, it's probably not going to be that memorable, but this proves that it's fun to see Neeson meeting his match, not by muscle, but by line delivery, which can be a recommendation for his future roles, if he continues to star in movies like this.

a little more character meat on this programmer's bones

[Quinoa1984 · 7/10 · 13 March 2015]

Run All Night is in part meat-n-potatoes action filmmaking... or it would be if not for a few things. First is that the director, Jaume Collet-Sera, is a little afraid of the audience possibly being 'bored' or receiving the same-old-same-old with these things called transitions from scenes taking place in other parts of the city. If you've seen a video game (ala Grand Theft Audo 5) or even Google-Maps, you'll see how this becomes one of those 'flashy-for-the-sake-of-it' moments that you sort of forget or take for granted that filmmakers get away with sometimes. And the story is, from my perspective, a bit of a lift from Road to Perdition: a man who's worked his whole life for a big-time criminal boss becomes a target - as does the hit-man's son - over some BS with the boss' terrible waste of a son, and so they go on the run, with an expert hit-man hired to track down the father and son (in other words, replace Liam Neeson, Ed Harris and Common with Tom Hanks, Paul Newman and Jude Law, you get the idea).

But really, this is good Hollywood action filmmaking that does at least TRY to put forward character first. We get this story of aging gangsters who grew up together and now see their world fall apart due to a number of factors - pride, grief, revenge, self-preservation, family instincts, any number of things to say 'Blood is Blood' - and it's people like Neeson and Harris in the leads making it full of heart and vitality. They don't always have to say much, or they say just enough, like when they sit down at a restaurant and nothing gets settled midway through the film. It's a moment where characters have to confront what they feel they have to do, right or (especially so) wrong, or several others in the film, that in all practicality trump the action set pieces.

Luckily, those action sequences do work better than expected. Some of the editing - OK, a good lot of it - is still fast and frenetic, but you can tell what's going on here, as opposed to Neeson's Taken franchise pics. There's one where a chase happens on the streets of Brooklyn that's a slight echo of French Connection, only here it's got a different charge with it being a crooked cop vehicle being chased, and then another in a subway bathroom that feels raw and even, at one point, outrageously funny.

Run All Night has several familiar tropes - the dumb gangster's son going over-board and the revenge plot aren't exclusive to Perdition (I've been told online John Wick bears a striking resemblance to the film as well) - and yet it's the characters and the acting that helps rise above some dumb choices made by characters at times, flaws that crop up. You're sure to spot them as well as I did, but what's on the side of the filmmakers is a) Neeson's presence and performance, which digs into playing a not-at-all-likable guy and making him a hero of a different order than his superhero-Taken man, and b) the ticking clock of it all being over one agonizing night.

So, in other words, it's worth a watch, especially if you dig New York city set thrillers and can adjust - not to say 'turn off' - the brain to its frequency of asking just enough, if not much more. It's biggest crime is that it probably won't inspire a bunch of revisits to it, unless if one just can't get enough of the actors (one of who is Common as a Terminator-like hit-man, which is unexpectedly satisfying as far as stunt casting goes).

As long as you're coming after Michael, I'm coming after you.

[CowherPowerForever · 8/10 · 14 March 2015]

Liam Neeson is back yet again with another action film. Some will claim this is another Taken film, and maybe he is cashing in big time on his success from that franchise, but the story in this film is much deeper overall than the recent Taken films, and the acting is absolutely amazing. With some great acting and a good story overall, Liam Neeson and the legendary Ed Harris deliver a must see film for any movie fan. The following is my review of Run All Night.

Run All Night was written by writer Brad Ingelsby who is very well known for his fabulous work on the 2013 film Out of the Furnace. I actually did not know that going into the film, after seeing he did write the film, I'm not surprised the characters were so greatly written. The story follows Mobster Shawn Maguire(Ed Harris) and his longtime friend and hit man Jimmy Conlon(Liam Neeson). These two have been friends for a great many years, even decades. Now that they are older and have children, things aren't exactly the same, more so for Jimmy. While Shawn is still very much close to his son Danny(Boyd Holbrook), Jimmy hasn't spoken to his son Mike(Joel Kinnaman) in several years. One night Mike has a big job as a limo driver, but the people he is driving around get into some dirt that makes Mike and Jimmy enemies with Shawn. Shawn promises to hunt Mike and Shawn down and kill them, and their family members because of the death of his son. The story is very rich in characters, and you actually care about them. While the film is nearly two hours, you honestly aren't looking at your watch at all. The film flows by perfectly because of the amazing writing by Brad Ingelsby. Overall, Ingelsby does another fabulous job of writing in this film, and his efforts on this film should not be overlooked.

The film was directed by Jaume Collet-Serra who is no stranger to working with Liam Neeson on action films. He previously worked with Neeson on Unknown and last years Non-Stop. The action in this film is not exactly a great deal, but easily much more than last years Non-Stop. There are some fabulous hand to hand combat action scenes, and even one heck on a chase scene. Though the chase scene can be convoluted because of some shaky cam work. Collett-Serra delivers this nice way of changing location in the film from scene to scene by zooming out of the current scene and showing a high rise city view, then slowly zooming in on the new location. While this clever way of changing might have been slightly overused, it was used perfectly and if something different. The acting was really another great aspect of the film, and when you have two legends like Ed Harris and Liam Neeson on the screen together, of course great things will happen. Neeson and Harris really play great off of each other, and you really believe the story as it plays out. The film also features great acting from Joel Kinnaman, Vincent D'Onofrio, and even Common fits in nicely with his small but important role in the film. With mostly great action and absolutely fabulous acting, Collett-Serra and Neeson have easily delivered another epic action film that will live on for many years to come.

The film was composed by composer Junkie XL who is well known for working with legendary composer Hans Zimmer. He recently scored films such as Divergent and 300: Rise of an Empire, and will be scoring next years Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The score XL delivers is nothing great nor something I would claim is memorable, but his work here easily adds some much needed depth in the bigger action scenes. There are some interesting things he does throughout the film, and this is easily a score I will be going back to listen to over and over for the next few weeks to see if it grows on me even more. Junkie XL doesn't deliver the greatest score to an action film, but the score is still very much top notch.

In closing, this is a very enjoyable film, which is certainly worth the price of admission. I personally spent almost ten dollars on this film and still feel I got my money's worth and then some. The replay value seems to be high with not only the great visuals from the directing angle, but also from the great performances from the actors. Fans of films in general should put this film on on your list to watch, certainly a must see film.

8/10

Run All Night makes good use of the actors' charisma and the sordid gangster tone in creating a fray from dusk till dawn.

[quincytheodore · 7/10 · 13 March 2015]

This may look like just another Liam Neeson's flick after Taken, understandably so with his usual look and its revenge premise, but worry not, Run All Night has enough substantial material and gritty crime ambiance to entertain. In a more convincing noir set-up, the movie gives Liam Neeson more range on his character, while still keeping his more well-known persona of action star. It justifiably takes more time to establish the premise to ensure this is more than just a random shooting spree.

Jimmy Conlon (Liam Nesson) has been an enforcer for mob boss Shawn Maquire (Ed Harris) for decades. He has done many terrible things, but when his son Michael (Joel Kinnaman) is unfortunately embroiled in the mafia's shady dealings, Jimmy must decide where his loyalty lies. This concept of veteran gunslinger who must fight once more is admittedly used by the recent Equalizer and John Wick, however Run All Night opts for more family issue than flair to create a different yet equally engaging effect.

Acting is pretty well done, action fans must be familiar with Neeson's performance by now. Ed Harris and Joel Kinnaman provide what was missing from Taken series, this is not your average rescue operation. It's a perspective of camaraderie relationship, a strange brother-in-arms dilemma Neeson's character had to deal with both his longtime friend and also his son. Harris is charismatic as always, while Kinnaman from Robocop and The Killing TV series, is splendid as the young son. He looks rugged, but still act upstanding enough for a contrast on the mob life.

The dynamic works in crime or gangster thriller. It also boasts gray visual, akin to 90s mystery movie. This near exclusive darkness is a bit daunting since it may hamper the fast paced action, but it does create the authentic feel of the city and its underlying often neglected lifestyles. The movie knows exactly what it wants to accomplish with its theme and confidently portrays it with the gritty visual.

Pacing is mostly good, although it staggers a bit in midway point. A few scenes feel as though they are a bit glossed over, probably for the sake of pushing the tempo towards the latter halt, these sequences could be explored more. Action is plausible, each fired shot, especially the one that hits, carries more weight. This is not Liam Neeson going Rambo all night, but a meticulous firework show.

Run All Night makes good use of the actors' charisma and the sordid gangster tone in creating a fray from dusk till dawn.

Tiring Clichés and Same Old Formula All Over, Only Blandly Executed.

[prospectus_capricornium · 5/10 · 15 March 2015]

I haven't seen any of the Taken films, but I've seen almost every 007 film and a handful of engaging others belonging to the genre, enough for me to say that RUN ALL NIGHT isn't one of them.

The entirety of the movie screams overkill, and almost every single part of it comes across as another reenactment of a familiar scene from another movie. It gathers attention once it spins out all the action and cat-and-mouse chases, but only up to a point when the sequences already strike as merely another version, only much worse, of what we've seen from another film. On times when the movie desperately pushes the level of violence one notch higher, it messes up further, no thanks to its horribly written script. Even the fact that this movie has overly qualified actors on its payroll, doesn't make any sense, as it gets overshadowed by its unfocused narrative and unsatisfying execution.

If it's any consolation, RUN ALL NIGHT has beautifully captured action sequences, some of which, breathtaking, but you can't expect of anything beyond that. Waiting for this movie show progress (and I'm not saying there's any) is as painful as watching a sportscar blaringly screech its wheels through the road, but barely leaves its place at all. Can't say if this is Neeson's worst, but certainly, among I've seen, this is one.

I actually enjoyed a new Liam Neeson action movie.. For real...

[kieranbattams · 7/10 · 14 March 2015]

This is a film I never planned to see, my dad was the one who decided to go and see it. Quite frankly i expected a crappy taken 4 type film with liam neeson doing the same thing he always does, things we got bored of after the first taken film. Seeing Joel Kinnaman on the poster also put me off because he is the most bland person I've ever known to grace screens.. at least thats what i thought after the lackluster Robocop remake. Surprisingly the film was actually something rather good to watch and the two lead stars did quite well.

Run all night could have easily been the first sequel to taken.. it follows Liam Neeson's character after he kills a mobster's son who attempted to kill his son (Kinnaman) causing the two to go on the run from cops and a trained killer played by rapper Common (who has very little to do and didn't have much of a point being in the film... until the end that is). It's the type of plot we have heard of before in a Die Hard sequel for example. Although unlike the generic actiom films we have been seeing recently the film entertains to an almost absurd degree at points, the action was gripping, especially in a particular scene that involves an apartment block on fire and a fight betweem Liam Neeson and Common.. it had me transfixed to the screen for its duration which is more than I can say for any scene from a Taken film. Ed Harris was also particularly good as Sean McGuire.. Who was advertised as the villain of the film, but you actually do feel for him at points and it makes you wonder if Liam Neeson is actually the villain.

The film really plays off of the fact that everything has a consequence and the father/son relationship is a pretty realistic one in the fact that Liam Neeson's character feels regret for the unforgivable things he has done and won't see his son go the same way. The film is far from perfect and a plot point that we do get towards the third act is just sort of blown over and never heard from again when we thought it would go somewhere.. But it is more than you have come to expect from this type of film and i can't complain about that, even if it became a bit choppy at points. Run all Night is definitely worth checking out despite the ridiculous title and I can safely say that this is Liam Neeson's best for a long time.

Only Ends One Way

[ThomasDrufke · 7/10 · 10 February 2019]

There's no airplane, train, international terrorists, or snow plows, but this Liam Neeson crime-thriller is one of great quality because of the actors involved. I mean please, Neeson vs Ed Harris? Two of my favorite actors of all time, there's no question I was going to enjoy this one. But it really is the dynamic between those two that makes the movie as good as it is. Without the weight of the history between them in this story, you don't get the same impact in the 3rd act when certain things go down. I could have actually used more backstory and flashbacks then we got. There's plenty of homages and inspirations that director Jaume Collet-Serra puts in here, like Mystic River or Heat, which are two of the greatest crime films of all time. I wouldn't say Run All Night gets to that level, but it's nonetheless a thrilling 120 minute ride. And you know, that ending was pretty sweet too.

7.3/10

A different Liam Nesson action film

[borowiczlucky · 7/10 · 26 July 2019]

This film caught my attention due to the Hell's Kitchen Irish Mob. I have always loved the severely overlooked film State Of Grace. This film feels like the VOD sequel. Though not a bad thing it doesn't fully recognize its true potential. This is another action vehicle for Neeson with some great sub plots of true events. They're are many bits of true crime trivia from The Westie's reign bloody N.Y. reign. A good film that could've been a great film if given the proper Story structure. Instead we get a good movie that hits most of the action cliches. If you enjoyed this film checkout State Of Grace, you won't be disappointed.

One of Liam Neeson's finest!

[Aodhanrooney · 8/10 · 14 March 2015]

Liam Neeson plays retired hit-man, James Conlon, and it's one of the finest roles he's played in years with a great performance, and with additional superb acting from Joel Kinnaman, whom plays his son, Mike Conlon. The first 'Taken' may have turned out great, until it launched a franchise, but 'Run All Night' is a definite improvement over Neeson's latest work, and a major improvement over clichéd action movies released in the past decade. What makes it so good, is that Neeson brings company with him: his co-star Kinnaman who plays his son - and it's a different movie experience altogether as in most clichéd action thrillers the main protagonist, usually played by a familiar action star, is usually without company the whole way through. The character James Conlon is so similar to Jimmy Bobo, a part Sylvester Stallone played in a movie called 'Bullet to the Head'. Jimmy Bobo was an ageing hit-man who still made hits on assignments, but compared to Conlon, he's more emotionless and merciless. Neeson's Conlon still had good in his heart somewhere, whereas Bobo cared more about killing and seeking vengeance. However, the action sequences are enjoyable and thrilling, acting is great and the direction and screen writing becomes intriguing whenever the main plot kicks in - so Run All Night has what it takes of being one of the most exciting movies of the year!

Run to Perdition

[sol- · 6/10 · 18 January 2016]

Chased by both mobsters and the police after killing the son of a local mob boss, a former mob hit-man finds a chance to bond with his own estranged son (who the mob also want dead) in this Liam Neeson action thriller. The plot has several similarities to 'Road to Perdition' with a wayward mob boss son, a mob boss whose loyalties are tested (Neeson's childhood friend here) and a father and son on the run who both come to indelibly appreciate one another, however, the film is nowhere near as classy as 'Road to Perdition' and the dynamic is not quite as interesting with the son fully grown. Ed Harris is effective in the equivalent of Paul Newman's role in 'Perdition', but he never quite gets the screen time he deserves considering how much of the plot hinges on his friendship with Neeson. An uncredited Nick Nolte is also solid, but Neeson shines the most here, bringing a weariness not seen in his previous collaborations with 'Unknown' and 'Non-Stop' director Jaume Collet-Serra. Neeson projects regret, sorrow and disenchantment - reminders of what a capable dramatic actor he was before 'Taken' made him an actor star. That said, the claims of this being Neeson's finest action film seem out of line. The characterisations may be decent here, but the plot offers nothing new and none of the action scenes are all that remarkable. Of course, the case could be argued that this is a positive since the film is surprisingly story-driven and down-to- earth, but it is more engaging than 'Unknown' or 'Non-Stop' for that? One's mileage is likely to vary.

I wonder if Liam Neeson is ever going to star in a serious movie again.

[lee_eisenberg · 5/10 · 29 June 2015]

If you came of age in the 1990s and early 2000s - as I did - then you know Liam Neeson as the man who played Oskar Schindler, Rob Roy, Jean Valjean and Alfred Kinsey (I deliberately ignore the worst entry in the "Star Wars" franchise). Then in the late 2000s he got into a streak of roles that would've gotten played by Harrison Ford in previous years. Jaume Collet-Serra's "Run All Night" is the latest entry. Essentially the same plot as Sam Mendes's "Road to Perdition", it features Neeson as a hit-man having to choose between loyalty to his estranged son and loyalty to his job.

I could predict virtually the entire movie. It'll be a relief if Neeson ever stars in another historical drama. For that matter, I wonder if Collet-Serra will ever direct a serious movie.

Liam Neeson's BEST ACTION movie to date!!!!!

[bear_adam · 10/10 · 13 March 2015]

I will first start off by saying do not listen to a word these dumb reviews are saying especially the so-called professional men and women from newspaper company's and etc because they have no idea what they are talking about at all. I absolutely loved this movie from beginning to end it was a highly action oriented film and in my opinion Liam Neeson's best to date beating out both Taken and Non-Stop both of which I own and have seen. The story is simple which makes it easy to follow. I also loved that there are a few scenes where Liam has some very dry humor that made me laugh. The action was Top Notch and continuous for about a good hour and twenty minutes out of a two hour movie. The other actors were Superb including Ed Harris who is always Awesome as well as Joel Kinnaman who did Fantastic. Common rocked as a Hit-man. The movie had great closure and I would recommend this movie to anyone who loves Liam Neeson's movies and even if you are tired of them I feel it's well worth it.

Very much a 'lesser' Neeson actioner, but an enjoyable one nonetheless

[jimbo-53-186511 · 6/10 · 27 February 2016]

Former hit-man Jimmy Conlon (Liam Neeson) finds himself on a collision course with mob boss and former employer Shawn Maguire (Ed Harris) after he kills Shawn's son Danny Maguire (Boyd Holbrook) when Danny attempts to shoot Jimmy's son Mike (Joel Kinnaman). Jimmy and Mike's father/son relationship is poor, but the two men find they must put their differences aside and work together to try to stay one step ahead of Shawn and his mob who are seeking vengeance against the two men.

Here we are again with another Neeson action vehicle and yes it is hard to see Neeson as anyone other than Brian Mills when watching these sort of films. That being said if you're prepared to accept with this film that 'what you see is what you get' then there is still some enjoyment to be had from this picture.

In some ways this is quite an interesting film as to me it had no real antagonist; although Conlon and Maguire end up facing off against each other these two men are practically civilians at the start; Neeson has retired and leads a fairly quiet life where his only vice seems to be that he likes his booze a bit too much. Harris is a man that has made some dodgy decisions in the past and wants to leave that life behind him and stay legit. The two men are friends in the early stages with Maguire very much looking after Conlon due to his fragile emotional state. This does give the face off more emotional weight than most action films as you really feel that this is the last thing that the two men want to do and it kind of creates a bit of tension in an indirect manner.

Although I liked this film it's another action film that suffers from some problematic writing; my main issue in terms of character and writing lay with Neeson's character Jimmy Conlon; his son portrays him as a bad father and forbids him from seeing his children, but at no point are we offered any insight or explanation as to what his failings were or why Jimmy and his son fell out? If Jimmy was shown as being an uncaring and selfish individual at any point during this film then his failings would have been self-explanatory, but he is very protective of his son and does everything he can to keep him out of harms way??? This is not a big deal and in no way impacts on one's enjoyment of the film, but it's sloppiness and poor character development such as this that often drags many action films down. In some ways this has a knock on effect with the 'family dynamics' and whilst they're necessary to try to present an emotional core all these efforts become practically redundant when we're given no understanding of the root cause. There are other narrative issues such as Conlon going from being an inept alcoholic one minute to being a super tough assassin the next minute, but again these things are a given nowadays for action films.

At 110 minutes this film is a little too long and this is further evidenced by a moderately tense but ridiculously long final act.

Taken for what it is then this is an enjoyable action thriller (particularly if you can ignore all the gaps in the writing). Neeson and Harris are superb as usual and the supporting cast are all solid as well. If you've enjoyed Neeson's previous action outings then this is worth a look.

Better than the movie "taken"

[anh-93010 · 14 May 2022]

There are many people who will disagree with my opinion but this movie is really fascinating.

It becomes more and more ordinary as time goes on but see how great it goes in the opening.

A thrilling chase with a story good enough for an action movie.

It deserves a higher rating so i'll give it 8.

"Run All Night" Delivers As A Quality Adult Action Film

[ActionFan-Reviews · 7/10 · 14 March 2015]

Liam Neeson's unexpected turn as a modern day action star has delivered some hit's and misses in the last several years. This certainly ranks as a hit and one of his better action films. His recent films pack more than action and tend to be much more dramatic and serious in tone. If you disliked the PG-13 Taken sequels and liked the R rated adult fare like The Grey or A Walk Among The Tombstones, you will enjoy this. Firstly, the movie has a compelling story that makes for an entertaining thrill ride. It provides on the action with some bloody gunfights, car chases and brutal fights. The actors involved actually make you care about the characters. Liam Neeson stands out as always, he makes you root for him even though his character has done awful things in the past. You want to see Jimmy "The Gravedigger" Conlon redeem himself and gun through the streets of NYC, kicking ass and delivering Bronson style justice to the bad guys! The supporting cast is great as well, Ed Harris, Joel Kinnamen even Common as the rival Hit-man all provide great performances. Overall, one of the better Liam Neeson action films to have come out in the last several years. Overall, it packs the action as well as the drama and character development. If you want a thrilling popcorn film to keep you entertained for a couple of hours at the cinema or at home, check it out.

7/10