Memory

 

Memory
Starring Liam Neeson, Guy Pearce, Monica Bellucci, Harold Torres
Directed by Martin Campbell

Ever since "Taken" became a box-office smash and turned Liam Neeson into an unlikely action hero, it seems that he's been perpetually stuck in those kinds of roles, and with very diminishing results. The man who once had a particular set of skills seems now to only know those skills and nothing else, appearing time and time again in low-budget actioneers that last a week or two in the theater before getting dumped on Hulu or Tubi, where they probably should've been the entire time. Neeson's been doing this gig for so long that even his own character doesn't remember anymore, which is the basis for "Memory" - a film that once again brings Neeson's set of skills to the forefront, even if he (and the bored audience) doesn't remember it.

Alex Lewis (Liam Neeson) is a skilled hitman and assassin who plans to retire after finding out he's experiencing early signs of Alzheimer's, which his brother is suffering from. He's assigned one final task to eliminate two people, but when Alex finds the second to be a twelve-year-old girl, he refuses and keeps evidence against wealthy real estate developer Davana Sealman (Monica Bellucci) who ordered the hit to protect her son, who's involved with the girl and a dangerous child-sex trafficking ring out of Mexico. Alex embarks on his own quest for revenge as he's being hunted by Sealman's men and FBI agent Vincent Serra (Guy Pearce), and as his body count rises, the line between justice and vengeance becomes more and more blurred, until you're left wondering if it's better for Alex to dispatch these criminals or allow the slow, painful wheels of justice take its tedious turn.

2022 is the year for Liam Neeson sleeper action films, already having appeared in two ("Blacklight" and "Memory"), and according to his iMDb page, he's got a few more down the pike including exciting titles like "Retribution," "In the Land of Saints and Sinners," and "Thug" - so we haven't seen the last of this seventy-year-old's set of skills...unfortunately. At least his films are still getting the big-screen treatment, unlike other repeat offenders like Bruce Willis and Nicolas Cage, who've resorted to direct-to-home media outings.

Each one of Neeson's films pretty much has the same basis, and it's extremely hard to distinguish them from one another. There could even be a game show called "Name That Neeson" where contestants are given plot lines to his films and they'll have to pick which one its from - something only a true MENSA person could accomplish at this point, since each one is indistinguishable from the rest:

-an older hitman on the verse of retirement
-one last hit before he retires for good
-said last hit goes terribly wrong
-those who hired him are now hunting him
-he realizes his mistakes and sets out to make things right
-he makes things right by killing those who are wrong
-there's either local cops or FBI or CIA who are always one step behind

I just pretty much summed up "Memory," but also could've used this to sum up any other of Neeson's filmography as of late, which is a shame because he's a stronger actor than the dull parts he's given, and even though this one could've pushed his dramatic chops more, it settles for miniature lulls between its outrageous action set pieces - outrageous because it's entirely unbelievable that a man on the verge of Alzheimer's can effortlessly track down and assassinate trained assassins with as much ease as dicing a tomato. He could've had a story of dealing with the slow deterioration of his mind, especially since Alzheimer's hits millions of people deeply close to home, but there's no room for sincerity and acclaimed performances in this script: we just need more gunfights.

"Memory" does try to spill into the hot button issue of child sex trafficking, which is also a really important and dangerous threat to the world as a whole, but even this is glossed over in favor of more fighting. Yet it does parlay into the vigilante dilemma people see mostly from the likes of Batman - is it more worthwhile to take the law into your own hands, or let the law take charge? Honestly, it seems that Neeson's Alex is in the right here, as he's killing men who sell young children as sex slaves, while the justice system would take years to get justice delivered (and, let's face it, sometimes not even that happens). Again, though, this delicate conundrum is overshadowed by Neeson shooting people in the head.

While "Memory" doesn't offer anything exciting or new, at least it's passable for an action film. It's not bad in theory, just execution: and I've still seen way worse. There honestly isn't much else to say about this film. It's another in a long line of forgettable Liam Neeson action films that'll sadly continue, keeping this living legend in a continual spiral downward into mediocrity, and leaving audiences yawning in sheer boredom.

The Score: C-