By Jorge Ignacio Castillo

Memory (USA, 2022): I’ll be honest: the idea of reviewing another Liam Neeson shoot-em-up gave me pause. In the beginning of his reinvention as an action star, Neeson’s movies showed a level of craftsmanship worth some attention. The ones of late (Blacklight, The Marksman, Honest Thief) have felt like VOD fodder. Only the involvement of director Martin Campbell and supporting players Guy Pearce and Monica Bellucci convinced me of giving Memory a shot.

While Memory is above average (better dialogue, properly staged action sequences), it’s still not great. Campbell is capable of telling a story in a mildly compelling way, but it’s no match to the source material (the two-decades old Belgian flick The Memory of a Killer). Guy Pearce—basically a co-lead—picks up the slack, but the outcome is flat if a little bloodier than your standard Taken knockoff.

Neeson gets a slightly meatier character for a change. Big Liam plays Alex Lewis, a force of nature turned killer-for-hire who’s considering retirement. The motivation? Early-onset Alzheimer. He wants to enjoy his last few months without tracking and murdering people. Fair enough.

His employer has other plans. Alex’ proverbial final contract is a minor whose testimony may bring down a child prostitution ring and very high profile clients. He refuses to go through with it, a decision that puts him in the crosshairs of the cartels, the police and the FBI. The only one who thinks there could be more to the story is FBI detective Vincent Serra (Guy Pierce), but few listen to him.

Never mind it’s inherently funny that a movie about memory loss features the protagonist of Memento. Memory seriously lacks ideas of its own: think Taken (of course) with a dash of Sicario, a sprinkle of The Raid, and a splash of John Woo, only with pigeons instead of doves (they work for less). If “Mexico” or “Texas” feel a little off, it’s because the film was shot in Bulgaria. Why shoot on location when you can get a tax break?

While the ending is gimmicky, it requires from Neeson more of an effort compared to his output of late. Yet his reluctancy to stretch his acting skills beyond these formulaic action romps remains baffling. Maybe it’s time to stop humoring him. 2/5 stars. Memory is now playing in theatres.