In cinemas/Sky Cinema; Cert 12A
Liam Neeson might save the day but he can’t save ‘Retribution’
You’ve seen him beat up bad guys on a flight (2014’s Non-Stop). You’ve watched him cause all sorts of trouble on board a speeding train (2018’s The Commuter). Now, prepare yourself for Liam Neeson’s toughest journey yet.
Another sad-dad thriller with a twist, Retribution presents Ballymena’s finest with an offer he couldn’t refuse. The esteemed performer spends most of his time here in a seated position, and you know what? That’s fine. He deserves a rest after all those Taken sequels.
Neeson portrays a Berlin-based financier who gets in his car one morning and discovers a bomb under the driver’s seat. The device is pressure-activated – an anonymous caller angrily informs Big Liamo that if he tries to step out of the vehicle, that’ll be it: game over. To make matters worse, his kids are in the back. Will our man save the day? It’s difficult to care, really.
Directed by Nimród Antal, this shoddy, shapeless feature is, in fact, a remake of a 2015 Spanish film. Neeson tries to make it work, but Retribution is poorly written and clumsily executed; a fun idea drowned out by a dozen bad ones. Think Speed, minus the charm, thrills and suspense.
Two stars
