“I’ve done terrible things in my life. Things for which I can never be forgiven. I decided long ago that when the night finally came for me to pay for the things I’d done, I wouldn’t protest. . . But the night didn’t go as planned. And they didn’t just come for me.”
So says Jimmy Conlon, a former mob hitman trying to come to terms with his past, played by Liam Neeson once more donning his action hero status.
It is not a role we would have been used to seeing Neeson in a mere few years ago. After years as a jobbing stage and bit-part film actor, the Irish actor finally started appearing in larger parts and deservedly gained international recognition for his role in 1993’s Schindler’s List.
The latter was followed by a number of acclaimed roles in dramas such as Rob Roy (1995), Michael Collins (1996), Gangs of New York (2002) and Kinsey (2004) to name but a few. These cemented his status as a popular dramatic actor while a starring role in The Phantom Menace, the first of the new Star Wars prequels in 1999 secured him a new fan base.
The new incarnation of the actor proved popular
However, at an age – his mid-50s – when icons like Stallone and Schwarzenegger began to see their popularity wane somewhat, Neeson decided to join their ranks with a series of action films, starting with Taken in 2008. He played former CIA agent Bryan Mills whose daughter is endangered and he seems well contented being cast in this role.
Although the film met with mixed reviews, this new incarnation of the actor proved popular; the film was a box office hit and went on to spawn two sequels in 2012 and 2015, while Neeson made the most of his new persona with roles in the big screen adaptation of The A Team (2012), the political thriller Unknown (2011), survival drama The Grey (2012) and last year’s airborne Non-Stop and acclaimed drama A Walk Among the Tombstones.
In Run All Night Liam Neeson stars as Conlon, a former tough guy, once known as the ‘Gravedigger’, who finds solace for the sins of his past in drink.
When his estranged son becomes a target of the Jimmy’s old boss and friend, mobster Shawn Maguire, Jimmy finds himself on the run with Mike with the mob and the police led by Detective John Harding on their heels. Jimmy does his best to keep his son from the same fate Jimmy is certain he’ll face himself . . . at the wrong end of a gun.
Now, with nowhere safe to turn, Jimmy just has one night to figure out exactly where his loyalties lie and to see if he can finally make things right.
“I loved how the story is full of action while it also examines the fractured relationships between two men who are like brothers, and a father trying to make amends with his son for things that happened years ago. It was complex and rich, with thrills and spills, and a lot of ‘what ifs’,” says Neeson in the film’s production notes.
“What would have happened if Jimmy had taken this course instead of that course? But that’s the story of all our lives, isn’t it?”
The film is directed by Spanish director Jaume Collet-Serra who previous directed the actor in both Unknown and Non-Stop. He says that Run All Night “was one of the best scripts I’ve ever read. Every word came to life.
“The central story of the fathers’ sins coming back to haunt their sons was evocative and the characters were full of soul.”
The director reveals he immediately envisioned Neeson in the role of Jimmy. “It was a no-brainer. Not only does Liam have great range, but he has sons, and I knew he’d connect to the story on a whole other level.”
Run All Night is written by Brad Ingelsby and the film also stars Joel Kinnaman as Mike, Vincent D’Onofrio as Detective Harding and Ed Harris as Shawn Maguire.