Run All Night (2015)

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  TheMovieDiorama

  7 / 10

  Run All Night might not have been popular amongst people, but actually this is Neeson and Collet-Serra's second best collaboration. The top spot goes to Unknown with Non-Stop in third position. In Run All Night, a father estranged from his son saves his life but at a consequence of provoking his oldest friend. How far will he go to protect his own blood and family? It might sound generic, and to be honest I was not entirely captivated in my original viewing. Now that I've revisited this, I can say there is something about it that stands out. Jaume Collet-Serra's direction. He turned a formulaic and predictable crime thriller into a flashy and technically fluent piece of cinema. The amount of different camera styles utilised is quite the achievement. Quick cuts for the action, long rotational takes for dialogue, freeze frames and slow motion, city traversal scenes that are sped up and the occasional POV perspectives. It's technically acute, and it is this that enhances the thriller as a whole. Then you add in Neeson, who is already a dependant rejuvenated action star, to bring in audiences. He does occasionally enter his typical "badass" role that he is now known for but the first act enabled him to convey a troubled and aged hitman with a tainted past. Throughout its entirety there is a gritty undertone that gets under your skin. New York City has never looked so hauntingly majestic at night yet simultaneously ever so terrifying. The supporting cast were functional, I liked Common as a professional hitman. Joel Kinnaman was mediocre as always and Ed Harris needed more screen time. Plenty of memorable scenes including a shootout in a bar, secluded woods and an intense urban car chase. All filmed excellently, with perhaps slightly too many quick cuts in the brawls. The main story is generic, however it works. The aesthetic and technical artistry overlaps the predictable plot and creates the illusory effect of freshness. I admire that. It's unfortunate this did not do well in its theatrical run, I think it will appreciated more as time goes on.

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