Based on the book series by Lawrence Block, Scott Frank’s “A Walk Among the Tombstones” is essentially a classic private-eye noir with a much bleaker outlook on life. Most of the action takes place in 1999, and with headlines about Y2K splashed all over the front pages of newspapers, there’s already a high amount of paranoia and anxiety looming in the air.
If the lines between good and evil were blurry in the noirs of the ‘40s and ‘50s, —and even the neo noirs of the ‘70s and ‘80s — those lines are practically invisible in “Tombstones.” Frank’s picture mainly consists of criminals in varying degrees doing business with one another. While certainly not game-changing or as complex as it thinks it is, the film is well executed, with only a few hiccups along the way.
One of those criminals is also our hero, Matthew Scudder (Liam Neeson), an unlicensed private eye. The P.I.’s of the past may have been questionable, but they were always licensed. On the other hand, Scudder walks the streets, hands placed firmly in his coat pockets, sporting nothing but an expired police badge.
However, this doesn’t make him any less good at his job. Scudder is quick-witted — Frank gives Neeson some great, witty dialogue to work with — resourceful and just plain cool.
Like the movie, Scudder acts deliberately, dealing with situations in a relaxed, cautious manner. This is in contrast to the alcoholic Scudder we see in the opening scene. He shoots down three criminals attempting to rob a bar but does so in a reckless manner. Now sober and no longer a cop, Scudder is more careful, more responsible, even though he’s still technically a criminal.
This is the best movie Neeson has been in in a long time; he plays Scudder with his usual gravelly determination, but the character is firmly planted in reality. He can still kick ass, but he’s not some cartoon character like he was in the “Taken” movies, who can do ridiculous things. Nothing about “Tombstones” feels outwardly ridiculous or out of bounds. It’s a dark film with very subtle undertones of humor, but the humor comes naturally from character and dialogue.
The central story involves Scudder helping drug dealer Kenny (Dan Stevens) find the men who kidnapped and killed his wife and stopping them before it happens to someone else. Right off the bat, Scott is testing our sympathies. It turns out that the two killers are a much-worse breed of criminal, who use old connections from a federal agency to get the records of their victims.
By the end, we still may not feel sympathetic toward Kenny or the other drug dealers, but we want to see those two sadists pay and we want to see Scudder deliver their punishment.
The only person who isn’t a criminal is T.J. (Brian “Astro” Bradley”), a homeless teen who befriends Scudder. Thankfully, Frank doesn’t make T.J. into a “boy in peril” — a common stock character for crime thrillers — but, instead, is Scudder’s loyal helper and only real friend.
Newcomer Bradley does a fantastic job: More often than not, he holds his own against Neeson.
Admittedly, the film’s ending is too drawn-out. The mystery in “Tombstones” becomes abundantly clear during the homestretch, so there’s no need to drag it out. This is part of a bigger issue the movie runs into: Oftentimes, it tries to convince you it’s more elaborate and complex than it actually is, which leads to some unnecessary narrative convolution.
Even so, Frank’s picture is a solid neo noir that further muddles those lines between what’s right and what’s wrong. It’s also one that chooses to unfold gradually and uses action more sparingly. As for Neeson, when he kicks ass in “Tombstones,” it has more of an impact.