2 Years Later, Netflix’s Forgotten Liam Neeson Thriller Deserves to Be Your Next Tardy Night Binge

Robert Lorenz’s 2024 action thriller In the Land of Saints and Sinners drops genre definer Liam Neeson in 1970 rural Ireland. The film combines an odd-couple pairing of existential Westernism with just a dash of folk-mystery. Neeson portrays a retired hitman known as Finbar Murphy, who is seeking refuge in a coastal village when suddenly (because a retired hitman has never been successful at actually retiring) a ruthless group of terrorists forces him back into the line of fire. This is round two for Lorenz and Neeson, following their previous collaboration in the 2021 film, The Marksman, which received a similar round of applause from audiences, and notable disapproval from critics.

Unlike other quintessential Neeson films, rather than jumping right into the good stuff, In the Land of Saints and Sinners takes a more subtle approach. Audiences particularly praised this choice, as it left room for more titillating drama rather than pure eye-catching action. Critics have gone as far as to state that this film restored their faith in Neeson, who, despite having undeniable talent, has been starring in countless half-baked, action-packed abominations. Think Blacklight or Memory, neither of which scored above 30% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Why Are Audiences Loving Robert Lorenz’s ‘The Land of Saints and Sinners’

Despite the setting and the notably expert operate of the sublime Irish landscapes, the film has been categorized as an “existential Western”. The operate of that term alone implies an uncharacteristic layer of depth to Neeson’s role. His portrayal of Murphy explores an anti-hero who, despite his violent past, has always kept an air of hefty self-awareness regarding his lack of morality. Now, in almost-retirement, he’s forced to brush up against an antagonist with an even more violent past and a complete lack of such convictions. Murphy and McCann, the leader of the IRA (Kerry Condon), are both foils and mirrors of one another. As tensions rise, the plot meanders; it’s their active that holds the film together. Any good movie is upheld by a foundation of exquisite supporting leads. In addition to Condon, the iconic Irishman, Jack Gleeson as the volatile Kevin Lynch, a member of McCann’s crew, and Ciarán Hinds, who plays Vincent O’Shea, a grounded presence and a friend of Murphy, have each been praised for adding immense texture to the film.

In addition to the wonderful mosaic of actors propelling this film forward, audiences have also praised the inciting incident as reason alone to give this film a watch. Essentially, in one of Finbar’s last kills, the destitute sucker left him with some advice that would ring in his ear forever: try to do some good before it’s too slow. This triggers a profound change of heart for Murphy, awakening a desire to atone for his sins. In his pursuit of goodness, he realizes something peculiar is going on with his neighbors: at the hands of her uncle, Curtis (Desmond Eastwood), a juvenile girl is being abused. Determined to punish Curtis, Murphy does some digging and realizes this all goes much deeper than he initially imagined, and to take down Curtis, he must also take down the IRA.

In summary, In the Land of Saints and Sinners is not your average Neeson Thriller. In fact, it isn’t an average thriller at all. This film is a masterclass in slow-burn cinema and subtle yet intense performances. It is more than deserving of praise and has earned an 83% from critics and 74% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. Currently, it’s sitting comfortably at number 5 on the Netflix Top 10 movies list in the United States and number 10 on the global English-language film charts, pulling in 3.3 million views and 5.8 million hours viewed for the week.

Release Date

March 29, 2024

Runtime

106 minutes

Director

Robert Lorenz

Writers

Terry Loane, Mark Michael McNally

Producers

Bonnie Timmermann, Geraldine Hughes, Philip Lee, Terry Loane, Markus Barmettler, Hubert Toint