Neeson plays against type in chilly caper
It’s been a difficult few weeks for Liam Neeson the man following his controversial race attack remarks.
In truth, Liam Neeson the actor hasn’t had the best of times either, getting bogged down in a series of post-Taken action flicks – and typecast as a result.
The synopsis of Cold Pursuit – Neeson’s snow plough driver Nels Coxman seeking revenge against the drug dealers he thinks killed his son – sounded like more of the same.
Thankfully, though, this remake of 2014 Norwegian film In Order of Disappearance veers off into several unexpected directions.
Debut screenwriter Frank Baldwin’s script, with its zany gangsters and black humour, amid the wintry setting makes it feel more like Fargo than “Taken in the Snow”.
The original flick’s director, Norwegian Hans Petter Moland, returns to helm this Englishlanguage reboot and apes Neeson’s tough-guy persona in a crime-caper that wisely doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Cold Pursuit is best summed up by the scene that sees Neeson’s ludicrously named hero splattering blood all over wedding dresses in a bridal shop after shooting someone.
In a film packed with wild work, Tom Bateman (Murder on the Orient Express) stands out from the pack as crazed gangster Trevor “Viking” Calcote.
It’s just as well too because Neeson bizarrely does a disappearing act for much of the inferior second half; it’s also a shame to see Laura Dern (Nels’ wife Grace) in such a redundant role.
The face-offs and set-pieces are cleverly done, though, with Moland utilising everything from Nels’ snow plough to an inflatable sofa.
Despite similarities, Cold Pursuit is no Fargo; but everyone involved deserves credit for defying expectations and pushing the envelope in Neeson’s best flick in years. More of the same is served up in this comedy-horror follow-up.
Rapid-fire gags are preferred over scares with Leo Fafard a likeable lead.
Shame about the dull plot and sloppy make-up.