(SPOILER WARNING!!! This article does contain spoilers, if you haven’t seen the movie, just see the first paragraph to be informed without spoilers!!!)

Run All Night is a decent movie with all you want with a movie that stars Liam Neeson, the story may be typical with annoying shaky camera scenes, but the action was good enough to watch.

Rating: 3.5 Stars

As long as Liam Neeson keeps making action movies, people will come and watch. Neeson has been a busy man lately, and now he stars in another action flick which I watched for the main reason that Neeson is in it. Plus, the rest of the cast was solid, so I had to check it out.

What I Like: The movie that stars Liam Neeson gives you what you want. A decent action movie that shows Neeson acting at his best. His somber yet gritty attitude where he may look like a nobody, but if you cross him, you’re practically screwed. The movie shows that, and will appeal to the audience that came to see him. Director Jaume Collet-Sera really captures Neeson’s character, Jimmy Conlon, the depressing remorsefulness of working for the Irish Mob making the necessary sacrifices that hits close to home. Like being away from his son, Mike Conlon played by Joel Kinnaman, to keep him safe from the dangers of his job and straining their relationship big time. Once the movie gets going, Collet-Sera shows why he is good at what he does and how loyal he is. I also enjoyed the action transitions they did in the movie where they move from one scene to another like a person is fast forwarding Google Maps. It was a unique way to transition from one scene to another. The movie had a solid cast even though some parts were minor characters. Ed Harris plays the role of Irish Mob Boss, Shawn Maguire, who also is tired of the mob life and a good friend to Jimmy. They also had Vincent D’Onofrio playing Detective Harding, Common (who looks weird without his trademark beard) playing a lethal hitman, Mr. Price, the beautiful Genesis Rodriguez playing Mike’s wife Gabriela, and a cameo appearance by Nick Nolte playing Jimmy’s brother Eddie Conlon.

The So So: The story was a typical mob kind of movie where Jimmy’s son witnesses a murder that Shawn’s son, Danny Maguire played by Boyd Holbrook, committed and wants to off Mike for being a witness that leads to Jimmy killing him and making Shawn end his close friendship with Jimmy and plotting to kill his son and then Jimmy. Once you get through the story, you really can sit back and just enjoy Neeson kicking butt. With that said, I really found the scene where Jimmy goes and kills Shawn really emotional because they were friends close as brothers and one little incident lead to him killing him. I can only imagine what goes through Jimmy’s head after all of that. It must be a mess.

What I Didn’t Like: Collet-Serra really took a page from the Jason Bourne movies action and ran with it. All the shaking cameras on practically every fight scene just got annoying and unbearable to watch. It was cool when the Jason Bourne movies did it, now other movies are just over doing it and I believe it is time to move on from that. Lastly, the cliched part of the story where Mike hates his father at first and then all of sudden he’s cool with him was just too underdeveloped and unemotional.

Overall, if you want to see Liam Neeson at his best in an action movie, you will not be disappointed. It’s a decent popcorn flick to just sit back and enjoy. The good acting is a tremondous plus as well!!!

Rating: 3.5 Stars

(Sidenote: Kill the Messenger- This movie is a true tragedy that features some strong acting from Jeremy Renner playing journalist Gary Webb. It talks about how Gary got a big scoop that the CIA was behind the distribution of crack cocaine in Latin America. When he printed out the story it was the biggest craze, but he was then accused of falsifying information in his story. The movie shows his fame descending and how it affected his life and family even though his sources were true. It was an interesting movie, but it definitely had its slow points. However, my favorite part is his speech at the end. Very emotional.
Rating: 3.5 Stars)

(Sidenote: Beyond the Lights- This movie stars the beautiful Gugu Mbatha-Raw as pop star Noni who is succumbing to the pressures of fame and pressure from her mom and manager, played by Minnie Driver (And her big head). After a near suicide attempt where she was saved by a young police officer named Kaz Nicole, played by Nate Parker. it becomes a very interesting romance where he brings her back down to Earth, and realizes who she really is. To me, i found this movie to be the best romance movie of 2014, because I thought it was a real down to earth kind of romance. The movie can try to cross the border of corniness, but I really appreciated the message this movie brings. It’s good enough for people to enjoy.
Rating: 3.5 Stars)