Absolution

Yes, it feels as if we’ve seen this movie before — but thanks to the suitably gritty and grainy, New England-set direction by Hans Petter Moland, the still-resonant star power of Neeson and a terrific supporting cast, “Absolution” delivers a punch with a sting all its own.

Moland delivers a sharp-looking, well-paced movie with a moody score.

The film’s various elements do not quite meld, and despite a few strong performances, none of the characters feel fully three-dimensional.

Wrapped in drab visuals and a doomy atmosphere, Absolution paints a world where lowlifes rule and neither doctors nor priests can be trusted. Yet there are moments when the beatdowns pause and a misty melancholy shines through.

It’s not that Absolution is any worse than the awful likes of “Retribution” (quite the opposite), but this seedy crime saga makes it uniquely clear that Neeson’s special set of skills have taken him as far as they can.

Neeson]’s trapped once again in tired tough guy material, bringing gravity to a film that’s already dragging him — and the audience — down.

While the film does make an admirable effort to focus on Neeson's action hero as a true character rather than a mere blunt instrument for fight scenes, but thanks to an overly cliché screenplay, the movie will likely be another forgettable action film in Neeson's filmography.

Absolution stays true to its name as we follow an aged gangster who manages to relocate his soul after a diagnosis of terminal cognitive decline in the form of CTE after years of head trauma as a boxer,gangster and domestic violence bring him a renewed focus and direction after years of repeating the same poor choices over and over. The casting, cinematography and screenplay are all excellent with some superb action sequences that emphasize the drama over the bombastity. Neeson is fantastic here and his co stars bring authentic performances that shine a light of hope in the dark storylines that play out here. Despite the somber themes, there is often hope in the for of lights, music and dreams as the character finds his heart again.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

IN A NUTSHELL: The story is about an aging gangster who attempts to reconnect with his children and rectify the mistakes of his past, but the criminal underworld won’t loosen their grip willingly. The film was directed by Hans Petter Moland. He also played the character “Larry the Drunk.” Writing credits go to Tony Gayton. THINGS I LIKED: I’ve always been a fan of Liam Neeson, even though I recognize he basically plays the same character in all of his recent movies. Here we go again. He has lost a lot of weight and is definitely looking older and weaker in this. His mustache makes him look like a 1970s child molester. That being said, he gave an excellent performance. Other cast members include Ron Perlman, Yolonda Ross, and Frankie Shaw. The movie was filmed in Boston. I adore Boston. There IS some action in the movie, but the scenes only add up to a few minutes out of the entire movie. Wham! Bam! Done! Every character is damaged. You can feel the years of bad decisions and pain. You will leave feeling immense sadness, but hopefully, determined to live a better life. THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE: It’s usually pretty fun watching Liam Neeson kick bad-guy butt, but in this movie, he IS the bad guy. I couldn’t relate to any of the characters. If you’re looking for a fast-paced action flick, this is not your movie. It’s super sad watching people die with regret. TIPS FOR PARENTS: Tons of profanity, including a zillion F-bombs We see an unmarried couple in bed. Alcohol We see a suicide attempt A man goes to a brothel where we hear moans and see a naked couple going at for a split second. Bloody, violent murders

Yes I know that Neeson lately stars in too many movies meaning it might mean not all of them are high quality and some I watched maybe overall people did not like that much, but so far I thought they are ok - this one felt like low budget one and not that it is the main thing - it felt quite boring throughout and like it could have been done much better story-wise

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]