The Commuter starts out as a Hithcockian thriller in which Liam Neeson, a former police detective and down-on-his-luck insurance salesman, is given a strange mission by a shadowy group while commuting back home on his usual train - I.D. someone for people (and results) unknown. Intriguing enough, and as the stakes keep rising, it seems like the mission becomes more and more impossible. (Really, if these people weren't sinister, this would almost feel like a Mission: Impossible recruitment job.) By the third act, the thriller has become an action film, with some reasonably exciting sequences (but so-so CG). As is often the case in these kinds of flicks, willing suspension of disbelief may become necessary. The train goes through at least one wide plot hole - namely that the bad guys are so omniscient, you wonder why they need Neeson's character at all - but maybe the revelations at the end fill it up adequately. Sometimes it's predictable, sometimes it isn't, but mostly, it's a thrill ride you're happy to go on, and the end of the line is satisfying.
The most implausible plot I've seen in a very long time. The other aspects of the movie are okay, nothing special. Honestly the credit design is the best part of the entire production.
Un Hercule Poirot che prende tutti a mazzate. Ricco di azione e poco plausibile come storia. Sia per la "fortuna" del protagonista, sia per l'eccesso di azione.
Con un incidente del genere mi sarei aspettato, come minimo, parecchi feriti gravi, invece no.
Finale praticamente scontato al giorno d'oggi.
You work hard,
you play by the rules,
you’re a good soldier,
and you don’t deserve it.
But the reality is sometimes
soldiers end up casualties.
Do you want to know what I still remember from “The Commuter“? Well, actually it’s not that much anymore. It’s that kind of movie. Only the opening scene where you see Michael MacCauley (Liam Neeson) performing his recurring morning ritual. From getting up to the ride to the metro station with his wife. A unique piece of film? Or is it a copy of the opening scene from “Rebirth” where you see the protagonist performing his daily morning activities as well? A way to demonstrate the daily grind of working people. Only Michael’s daily pattern is being discontinued in a rather harsh way when he’s being fired at work, where he has been selling life insurances for over 10 years, at the age of 60. And after that, there’s this unknown beautiful woman (Vera Farmiga) who makes a hypothetical proposal. He has to take a bag from another traveler on the metro in order to protect himself and his family from a financial catastrophe. Sounds simple but essentially it’s a task that should not be underestimated.
It seems as though Neeson got a patent on this type of film where he has to work against the clock to complete a task, commissioned by unscrupulous criminals. And time and again it is his family that is also threatened. “The Commuter” is a bit “Non-Stop” and a cross-section of all the “Taken” episodes. And this time it takes place on a train. But to be honest, at a certain moment I thought it was enormously exaggerated and implausible. For a movie night where you can turn off your brains for a while, such that they can enjoy a well-deserved rest, and you can gorge on homemade popcorn, this film isn’t that awful. But dear Mr. Neeson. Isn’t it time to take a different road and diversify your work a bit? Don’t be tempted always to play in the same kind of movies with just a different environment and set-up? After all, you aren’t getting any younger. Right?
A surprisingly good action film. The setting of the daily commute to and from work resonated was realistic and well done. Has elements of Taken, Unstoppable, Saw, The Fugitive and Spartacus, yet even though it is derivative, it still feels fresh, which it owes to its well-paced plot and cinematography. Liam Neeson excels as a relatable and sympathetic action hero.
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Comments 1 - 12 of 12
Siskoid
The Commuter starts out as a Hithcockian thriller in which Liam Neeson, a former police detective and down-on-his-luck insurance salesman, is given a strange mission by a shadowy group while commuting back home on his usual train - I.D. someone for people (and results) unknown. Intriguing enough, and as the stakes keep rising, it seems like the mission becomes more and more impossible. (Really, if these people weren't sinister, this would almost feel like a Mission: Impossible recruitment job.) By the third act, the thriller has become an action film, with some reasonably exciting sequences (but so-so CG). As is often the case in these kinds of flicks, willing suspension of disbelief may become necessary. The train goes through at least one wide plot hole - namely that the bad guys are so omniscient, you wonder why they need Neeson's character at all - but maybe the revelations at the end fill it up adequately. Sometimes it's predictable, sometimes it isn't, but mostly, it's a thrill ride you're happy to go on, and the end of the line is satisfying.kiwidesign
lol at the end credits comment, very true! Nice/unusual credits design is rare in this kind of flick.Longomontanus
The most implausible plot I've seen in a very long time. The other aspects of the movie are okay, nothing special. Honestly the credit design is the best part of the entire production.Myke
What a rideDaniloFreiles
Un Hercule Poirot che prende tutti a mazzate. Ricco di azione e poco plausibile come storia. Sia per la "fortuna" del protagonista, sia per l'eccesso di azione.Finale praticamente scontato al giorno d'oggi.
Taca5
One of the best thrillers in 2018.ikkegoemikke
You work hard,you play by the rules,
you’re a good soldier,
and you don’t deserve it.
But the reality is sometimes
soldiers end up casualties.
Do you want to know what I still remember from “The Commuter“? Well, actually it’s not that much anymore. It’s that kind of movie. Only the opening scene where you see Michael MacCauley (Liam Neeson) performing his recurring morning ritual. From getting up to the ride to the metro station with his wife. A unique piece of film? Or is it a copy of the opening scene from “Rebirth” where you see the protagonist performing his daily morning activities as well? A way to demonstrate the daily grind of working people. Only Michael’s daily pattern is being discontinued in a rather harsh way when he’s being fired at work, where he has been selling life insurances for over 10 years, at the age of 60. And after that, there’s this unknown beautiful woman (Vera Farmiga) who makes a hypothetical proposal. He has to take a bag from another traveler on the metro in order to protect himself and his family from a financial catastrophe. Sounds simple but essentially it’s a task that should not be underestimated.
It seems as though Neeson got a patent on this type of film where he has to work against the clock to complete a task, commissioned by unscrupulous criminals. And time and again it is his family that is also threatened. “The Commuter” is a bit “Non-Stop” and a cross-section of all the “Taken” episodes. And this time it takes place on a train. But to be honest, at a certain moment I thought it was enormously exaggerated and implausible. For a movie night where you can turn off your brains for a while, such that they can enjoy a well-deserved rest, and you can gorge on homemade popcorn, this film isn’t that awful. But dear Mr. Neeson. Isn’t it time to take a different road and diversify your work a bit? Don’t be tempted always to play in the same kind of movies with just a different environment and set-up? After all, you aren’t getting any younger. Right?
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palefire
A surprisingly good action film. The setting of the daily commute to and from work resonated was realistic and well done. Has elements of Taken, Unstoppable, Saw, The Fugitive and Spartacus, yet even though it is derivative, it still feels fresh, which it owes to its well-paced plot and cinematography. Liam Neeson excels as a relatable and sympathetic action hero.Ceejzor
solid action flick.chunkylefunga
Very paint by numbers; nothing special.Earring72
Very silly and unbelievable with some bad CGI. Forgetable and predictablebeehivespirit
sucked balls lol