A Walk Among the Tombstones: No Better Than the C-Block on the Ten O’Clock News

Writer/director Scott Frank adapts the Lawrence Block novel delivering a fairly mediocre time. Filled with low-impact “shocks” and storylines that seems like store bought clichés at best, Walk never really delivers on its intended promise..

Premise: Ex-cop Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug dealer to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife. Result: A lot pf built up anxiety never quite pays off.

Matt Scudder (Liam Neeson), retired after an incident at work, is now in the “favors for money” business. Skulking about New York with a five-o’clock shadow, an AA-halo, and a hard-earned melancholy, Scudder knows the darkness of the streets and won’t let anyone forget it. So when fellow recovering addict, Peter Kristo (Boyd Holbrook), encounters him, it is not long before that shadowy persona comes to haunt him.

Peter’s brother, Kenny (Dan Stevens), it turns out, has recently lost his wife at the hands of some monstrous abductors. And so, despite his best efforts, Scudder is drawn into a web of mystery and horror, festering in the New York underbelly

At least, that is what it is meant to feel like. Realistically, we are confronted by the isolated tale of two lunatics, Ray (David Harbour) and Albert (Adam David Thompson) who abduct, violate and murder women for a particular, bizarre purpose. The grapplings between them and these make-shift, reluctant vigilantes – Scudder, the hapless Kristos and some weird but intriguing support from precocious young sleuth TJ (Astro)- seems far more like something that could happen on screen, rather than happen in real life.

Of course, it has all the typically trappings of a color-by-number thriller: first, the woeful ex-cop backstory, the reason our anti-hero turned out so maudlin; this plotline is at best, superfluous. Second, the creepy thriller plotline itself, that does a wonderful job of setting audiences up for a payoff that never comes; at every turn we are built up to expect horror beyond horror, and instead are provided with death and motives that would shock the Amish.

Honestly, not scary even when they actually walk among the tombstones

True, it is a testament to our collective cynicism that murder just doesn’t have its edge anymore, but it is impossible to watch this film without feeling like for weeks a surprise has been built up only to get socks and your Dad’s used copy of Hustler, the one with the centerfold torn out (watch 8MM if you want the same feel with more payoff).

A third plotline manifests, the buddy cop template, where Scudder befriends an orphan, or some type of street urchin, with all the making of a Sherlock Picasso. Why that plotline is there, who knows, but sadly, in a film about horror, it may be the only thing worth watching.

Fortunately, the acting in the film is pretty good. We all know Neeson can raspy-voice-bully any enemy and we will still watch enraptured. Stevens is strong in his role as vengeful husband; Holbrook in his role as recovering crack-whore (honestly, what is with this stretch of roles recently? Does he just not want to shave or shower? Is he even acting anymore??)

Thompson and Harbor are spooky and their creepy on screen musings do make for an eerie time. Astro may be the most intriguing, unique part of the film, however. While it is not clear why this character is in the movie at all really, we are glad he is, considering how nuanced, powerful, and memorable Astro’s performance is. But really, maybe a spin-off where TJ finds out who stole Suzie’s cheerleader outfit might be more appropriate.

Big picture, Walk is a miss. Not a big miss, mind you, but a miss nonetheless. It is uninspired and bogged down trying desperately to be more than it is. The mood is well cultivated, the story fair, and the acting good so all in all a fair time, but sadly Walk just doesn’t live up to the shock of what we can see for free on the news.

Rating: 6 – A mediocre Prosecco that a cute bartender served you