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[tab title="Movie Review"]
My daddy was a bank robber!
I’ve said it before and I will continue to say it again and again and again: Liam Neeson is "The January Man". Ever since the success of Taken, he’s been in just about every January-released action flick that you can imagine becoming cinema's own Winter Soldier. Ridiculous as it sounds, these B-movies are actually quite entertaining and Neeson, now 68, makes his ever-aging characters believable . . . which brings us to this January’s Honest Thief, an often implausible film that might just be his hardest to swallow.
But that doesn’t make it unwatchable. Thanks to the dedication of everyone involved, Honest Thief works far more often than it doesn’t when it comes to B-grade flicks. It might be slower in its rollout and more introspective, but the film delivers another solid revenge punch.
Directed by Ozark’s co-creator Mark Williams, Honest Thief is the tale of yet another lovable scoundrel with yet another particular set of skills. This time, though, it is breaking and entering and, yup, this includes safe cracking. But when Tom Carter (Neeson) falls for Annie (Kate Walsh), the “In & Out Bandit” wants to turn himself in and live a clean life without the $9 million he’s stolen since he started robbing banks. He's stored it all in a rental unit and wants to turn everything over to the feds.
Except the FBI agents (Jeffrey Donovan and Robert Patrick) he’s called up to confess his crime to don’t believe him, so they send Agents Nivens (Jai Courtney) and Hall (Anthony Ramos) to meet with him. That’s when things go sideways. Nivens and Hall, facing far too much temptation, decide to rob Carter and pin the murder of Agent Baker (Patrick) on him.
And when Annie gets herself entangled in the drama, Carter must come to her rescue and beat the stuffing out of those who want to do him harm. If it sounds like a typical Neeson vehicle, know that Honest Thief has a bit more romance and drama in it then some of his other late-career hits. Calm your blood lust, fellas. I mean, the revenge element is there in this flicks seams, but you are going to have to wait for it to split and make itself known.
Neeson doesn’t miss-dial here. He plays yet another interesting character and, when pushed to the edge by these doublecrossing agents, his knuckles get as tight as the veins in his neck. He's pissed. Revenge will be his and, yeah, we know it. You don’t pop these flicks in the blu-ray player expecting for Neeson to lose and this one, eventually, proves to be yet another crowd-cheering Neeson romp.
Carter’s not playing around and, eventually, he gets to deliver blow after blow of righteous fury. He is, after all, a not-so innocent man trying to do the right thing by his girl. Honest Thief is now on blu-ray thanks to Universal Home Entertainment.
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[tab title="Blu-ray Details"]
Blu-ray Details:
Home Video Distributor: Universal Studios
Available on Blu-ray - December 29, 2020
Screen Formats: 2.39:1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; Two-disc set; DVD copy
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
Meticulous thief Tom Carter (Liam Neeson) has stolen $9 million from small-town banks while keeping his identity a secret. But after he falls in love with the bubbly Annie (Kate Walsh), Tom decides to come clean about his criminal past, only to be double-crossed by two ruthless FBI agents. Packed with action, Honest Thief is a tale of redemption and one man's mission to make things right for the sake of love.
Video:
Released from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment and framed in a wide aspect ratio of 2.39:1, Honest Thief - when the action finally hits - packs a solid punch. The picture itself is crisp and black levels are unwavering sharp, providing good contrast throughout. There are a lot of nighttime scenes and the black levels never drop their quality. Colors are dynamic throughout and look very typical when it comes to grizzled, modern day releases. This one does not disappoint.
Audio:
The DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 packs a mighty wallop to your home entertainment system. Buckle up! The sound of guns firing and car crashes are soon going to be filling your house and shaking your walls.
Supplements:
Commentary:
- None
Special Features:
The release includes Blu-ray, DVD and a digital copy of Honest Thief and that’s it.
Blu-ray Rating:
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[tab title="Film Details"]
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for strong violence, crude references and brief strong language.
Runtime: 99 mins
Director: Mark Williams
Writer: Steve Allrich, Mark Williams
Cast: Liam Neeson, Kate Walsh, Jai Courtney
Genre: Action | Crime
Tagline: Never Steal a Man's Second Chance.
Memorable Movie Quote: "I had to go tell Baker's wife, her husband isn't coming home anymore"
Theatrical Distributor: Universal Studios
Official Site: https://www.facebook.com/HonestThiefMov/
Release Date: October 16, 2020
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: December 29, 2020.
Synopsis: They call him the In and Out Bandit because meticulous thief Tom Carter (Liam Neeson) has stolen $9 million from small-town banks while managing to keep his identity a secret. But after he falls in love with the bubbly Annie (Kate Walsh), Tom decides to make a fresh start by coming clean about his criminal past, only to be double-crossed by two ruthless FBI agents. From the co-creator of Emmy-nominated series Ozark, thriller Honest Thief showcases Liam Neeson in a heartfelt tale of redemption, packed with fights, chases and explosions centered on one man's mission to make things right for the sake of love.
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