It’s been six years since Liam Neeson’s Taken series delivered its cinematic finale with with 2014’s Taken 3. The end of his Bryan Mills character’s journey to kick as much ass as possible, there’s been quite a few movies that have tried match up to the experience of that storied franchise. And yet, it feels like Neeson’s latest film, Honest Thief, is the heir apparent to the Taken series. Namely because it pits Liam Neeson against some pretty bad dudes, in a quest for redemption and revenge. See it for yourself in the trailer below:
Honest Thief sees Neeson’s protagonist, Tom Carter, ready to pay back the $9 million he’s stolen throughout a career in crime. Turning himself into law enforcement, he’s ready to do his time, and go straight for the woman he loves (The Umbrella Academy’s Kate Walsh.) There’s just one, huge problem: a pair of dirty agents (Hamilton’s Anthony Ramos and The Suicide Squad’s Jai Courtney) want to make off with the money for themselves and frame Carter with a murder to make sure he can’t stop them. That was their first mistake, and it could be a fatal one.
As it turns out, Honest Thief Tom Carter is really Thomas Dolan, and he does indeed have a particular set of skills. Like, a retired Marine with demolitions training worth of skills. Not even trying to kill his girlfriend is going to turn him away from taking the fight to those who would do him harm. And oh boy, does it look rad as hell, especially considering how director Mark Williams’ film is looking like it’ll be available to greet returning theatrical audiences in October.
It’s times like these, when people are really looking forward to, hopefully, getting back out into the world, that movies like Honest Thief tend to have the most impact. This is a familiar looking caper, for sure, as Liam Neeson and revenge go hand in hand. But the sheer excitement that comes across in this trailer is, undeniably, a warm blanked of action intrigue that recalls some of Neeson’s greatest career hits.
Not to mention, audiences who have recently discovered (or rediscovered) Anthony Ramos’ talent thanks to the Disney+ debut of Hamilton are going to love seeing him in action, alongside another action fixture, Jai Courtney. But seeing as how Ramos is a dirty agent who wants to retire Liam Neeson’s Honest Thief character for good, this is a particular duel people might want him to lose on the big screen. Honest Thief looks ready to kick all sorts of ass at the movies, and as it’s looking to hit theaters on October 9th, complete with a new and particular set of skills on public, violent display, the excitement couldn’t be more intense.
