Loathe as I am to encourage violent revenge fantasy, it’s gonna happen from time-to-time, so it may as well be good. I’d love to blame my dark desires on Clint Eastwood and the plethora of vigilante epics that raised me, but truth is I’d likely have a Death Wish streak even were my upbringing 100% Disney in nature. What’s important now is that these films in which old man Neeson breaks a guy-and-a-half with a fist-and-a-half every minute-and-a-half be at least mildly entertaining if they’re going to be socially irresponsible. Cold Pursuit is much better than most.
You’d think a film about drugs and revenge and murder would perhaps not focus on a snowplow driver … but you’d only think that if you’ve never seen Liam Neeson film before. Nels Coxman (Neeson) is a soft-spoken, laconic public servant. He is embarrassed by his “Citizen of the Year” award – do they really give those to snowplow drivers? I mean, recognition of this sort is kind of awesome, but I can’t believe there’s a shred of honesty to it. Even in ski lodge Colorado, it still only snows just long enough to strand the Torrance family for a month or two, right?
On the night of the award, Nels’ son is killed by drug dealers … thus combining Nels’ biggest fears together in one evening: the death of his child and public speaking. Cold Pursuit doesn’t let us know exactly which is the greater tragedy, but presumably Nels’ suicide attempt would have preceded the latter, no? Luckily for us, the anticipated dinner of shrapnel is interrupted by son’s friend, D.E. Machina, who informs Nels and the rest of us that drug dealers killed his son. Now Nels has something to live for: ice cold revenge.
And what does a snow plow driver know about taking out drug dealing bad guys? “Enough” seems to be the correct answer. It helps that some of his targets don’t seem quite up to the task; one works as a haberdasher. It also helps that the true bad guy, untouchable kingpin and constantly-surrounded-by-muscle business douche Trevor “Viking” Calcote (Tom Bateman), has channeled his inner racist and incorrectly blamed a Native American conglomerate for the depletion in his personal work force. Oh, everybody has a nickname in this film. It shows when the films mourns each death, good and bad guy alike, with a quick black screen announcement. This leads to moments like Nels asking “Where’s ‘Speedo’?” Gee, Liam, have you checked by the pool?
There’s a delightful tongue-in-cheek layer of omniscience to Cold Pursuit. This shows up in the violent battles and their aftermaths, oft staged to include elements of both horror and humor, but is immediately noticeable in the dialogue as when a kidnap victim name-drops “Stockholm Syndrome.” Agh! The movie is self-aware! Get out now, while you can! Especially while Emmy Rossum tries to make this into Fargo. I say the feel of the picture is far more refreshing than not, especially given Neeson’s usual fiesta of encrippling.
True or not, I feel like Liam Neeson makes another tired action-shoot-em-up every six months now. I can say quite honestly, however, this is the first one I’ve enjoyed in what seems like a very long time. I don’t know if that has to do primarily with Liam or the scripts he prefers, but I do know it’s a rarity. So feel free to enjoy this one before the man talks himself into a corner and gets relegated to a Mel Gibson career.
♪Ol’ man Neeson
Needs little reason
If he knows something
Then your life’s worth nothing
He will just keep punching
He keeps crunching along
(I’m) stifling a yawn ♫
Rated R, 118 Minutes
Director: Hans Petter Moland
Writer: Frank Baldwin
Genre: Liam’s mad, again
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: Fans of dark humor
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: Pacifists
♪ Parody Inspired by “Ol’ Man River”
