Movie Review: Memory

 

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Michael's Movie Grade: B-

A well-made if familiar Liam Neeson thriller. 

Most movie goers today know the basic plot of a film simply by knowing that Liam Neeson is the star. This movie is not any different. Liam plays a contract killer, who after being hired to kill a child turn against his employers. In other words, this is the typical Liam Neeson story. However, this movie delivers quite well. As should be excepted the action scenes are excellent. They are a bit more violent than usual, but it is just as exciting. Some of these action scenes are over the top, but us movie fans except and want that from one of these movies and it only adds to the excitement. The movie also benefits from having other characters get the spotlight besides just the one Liam plays. These characters are actually quite likable, and one enjoys spending time with them. This film is definitely darker in some ways than a lot of these movies, and that helps make the film stand out a little. The darker moments are handled with a mature and more serious tone, that makes them at times feel even a little chilling. Plus there is a part of all of us that wants to see those who do such horrible things get what is coming to them. Because of this the darker the dark moments are the more satisfying it is to see them get it. Despite the familiarity of the story there are some surprisingly effective dark story twists here. Liam Neeson's character here is similar to a lot of characters he has played in the past but he is such a good actor and so great at playing these characters that his performances always lift these movies up in a way most other actors couldn't. 

As stated before, this movie's story is very familiar to most movie goers who have seen at least one film starring Liam Neeson. There is also quite a bit of dialogue that feels quite familiar and it can feel a bit cliché at times. The villains while easy to hate, do feel quite a bit underdeveloped and not that interesting on their own. 

If you like Liam Neeson movies, than this film is a quite good one, even if it doesn't heavily differ from his other films.