Just over ten years ago a small, original action film took pop culture by storm. Taken became an overnight success spawning a couple of sequels and an unlike action star in serious Oscar nominee actor Liam Neeson. 

​

Since then Neeson has starred in a handful of action films with various degrees of success. Cold Pursuit is one of the good ones. 

​

Nels Coxman's quiet life as a snow plow driver comes crashing down when his beloved son dies under mysterious circumstances. His search for the truth soon becomes a quest for revenge against a psychotic drug lord named Viking and his sleazy henchmen. Transformed from upstanding citizen to coldblooded vigilante, Coxman unwittingly sets off a chain of events that includes a kidnapping, a series of deadly misunderstandings and a turf war between Viking and a rival boss.

​

Cold Pursuit narratively follows a tried and true action formula - person loses family member/loved one and seeks vengeance. Now thats not a bad thing at all - you get the kinda movie that you're promised. Revenge is literally served up cold (pun very much intended) and it gets both brutal and very inventive at the same time. 

​

Neeson's character isn't a trained killer/hitman/retired policeman but an ordinary run of the mill kinda guy with a seemingly perfect life. This all comes crashing down after the death of his son. His first kill is a laugh (just because he's really, really bad at it). It makes a welcome change to the characters he normal gets to play in these action flicks. 

​

However Cold Pursuit thematically doesn't seem to know what kind of movie it wants to be. One moment its a super dark violent comedy then it seems to want to be some deep, ethereal dramatic action film. Its not really that jarring, just slightly surprising.  

​

Cold Pursuit is a solid action film where revenge is dished up in the most brutal and inventive ways.