A Walk Among The Tombstones (2014, Dir. Scott Frank, USA) (Cert: 15/R) **

Starring: Liam Neeson, Astro, Dan Stevens

Ex-cop Matt Scudder (Neeson) has been living sober for the last eight years and helps other people with their own addictions. It's through a local drug addict (Boyd Holbrook) that Matt talks with the addict's brother, Kenny (Stevens), a drug trafficker. Kenny's wife (Razane Jammall) was murdered, and Kenny wants Matt to find them men responsible. As Matt looks deeper, other similar cases start to emerge.

The most recent outing for Lawrence Block's literary detective Matthew Scudder (a previous novel, 8 Million Ways To Die was released in 1988, with Jeff Bridges as Scudder), A Walk Amongst The Tombstones is a film that has three differing ideas of what it wants to be and never picks a side, resulting in a rather unsatisfying film. 

With Liam Neeson in the lead, this is one in a seemingly endless parade of post-Taken broody Neeson action movies that all follow a similar and rather tired tone (to be honest, I don't think Taken is all that good to anyway). The film also wants to be a gritty modern film noir, a style that seems to be emerging into cinemas nowadays with the recent horror film, Deliver Us From Evil. The third is as a sort of 70's-styled thriller in the vein of directors like William Freidkin, which is the most satisfying guise of the three.

In director and screenwriter Scott Frank, there's an emergence of an auteur sensibility. Frank has a definite eye for style and it's pleasing, even if it's perhaps wasted here. The script is less impressive, with a fairly bad ear for dialogue (a young street kid Neeson takes under his wing, played by Astro, is conceptually interesting but lurches between a literate and talented youngster to a wannabe gangsta in his dialogue). The film also makes constant reference to the Millennium Bug, as the film is set in the late-90's. If you're waiting for the constant allusion to this to have any baring on the plot, you're going to be disappointed.

On occasion, A Walk Among The Tombstones has things to recommend it. An interesting aesthetic, a few memorable scenes and an effective approach to violence. Still, it's far too long, not especially well-written and in the end, just rather tired and dull.