Unlicensed private investigator/ former cop Matthew Scudder (Liam Nesson) is hired by a drug dealer (Dan Stevens) to find the men who abducted and killed his wife.   Scudder finds the killers have done this before and will do it again as he continues to battle with his own past demons as an alcoholic and former NYPD cop.

 

A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES is a classic noir thriller as Nesson plays Scudder in a way that will be remembered among the performances of Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade and Phillip Marlowe.   It is a gritty detective thriller set against the time of 1999 New York City (and I do chuckle when I see all of the Y2K fears seen in the background).   Scudder is the detective who does investigating the old fashioned way where he looks through old microfiche while his homeless teenage protégé TJ is used to using the internet to search the newspapers.  He schools TJ in the ways of the world while watching out for him like the son Scudder never had.   I hope I see Nesson back as Scudder soon since there are another fifteen novels (by Lawrence Block) to chose from and A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES is loosely adapted from the tenth novel of the same name.  If you’re expecting another TAKEN, this movie will surprise you with a role where a detective is using a different set of skills (to detect and find people) and not another certain type of skills (which can kill you).   This movie is the type of movie you used to see more often in other decades like the 1940s and 1970s and 1980s.   Also it is nice to see Liam Nesson being a working class hero instead of the action star roles that have given a second life to his acting career during the last few years.   Go see A WALK BEOFRE THE TOMBSTONES so Universal Pictures clearly hears that we want another Matthew Scudder movie starring Liam Nesson.

 

This review is ©9-26-2014 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission.  Send all comments to feedback@enterline-media.com

 

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