Liam Neeson's new movie In the Land of Saints and Sinners has broken the actor's eight-movie Rotten Tomatoes streak that lasted four years. The Irish actor reinvented himself as an action hero when he starred in Pierre Morel's action-thriller Taken in 2008. Since then, the Oscar-nominee has appeared in numerous movies across the action, crime, and thriller genres, with the most recent being In the Land of Saints and Sinners, his second collaboration with director Robert Lorenz.
The trailer for In the Land of Saints and Sinners follows Neeson as a world-weary assassin seeking redemption in the Irish wilderness, whose past comes back to haunt him. The movie, which features an ensemble cast of Kerry Condon, Ciarán Hinds, Colm Meaney, and Jack Gleeson, has received critical acclaim. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the film is currently certified 'Fresh,' scoring 83%, based on 23 reviews.
If it stays 'Fresh' as more reviews get tabulated, it will break an unwanted streak of poorly-reviewed movies the Schindler's List star has posted on the review-aggregation website. In particular, Neeson has had a string of eight consecutive movies over a four-year period that were certified 'Rotten' on the site since 2020.
Neeson's recent movies have been fairly well received by audiences for the most part, but they certainly lack the critical acclaim of some of his earlier work. The positive reception for In the Land of Saints and Sinners means it could eventually become one of Liam Neeson's best action movies and potentially mark a return to form for the star, who has carved out a successful niche in the action-thriller genre, but has also endured a string of critical and commercial flops in recent times.
Standing out in the action and thriller genre can often be a challenge, so Neeson's status as an action star is all the more impressive due to his advanced age. The established and respected 71-year-old actor has the luxury to pick and choose whichever projects he wishes to do, and his clear love of the action genre has allowed him to thrive in these kinds of movies.
The Ice Road 2 and Cold Storage are Neeson's upcoming movies currently in production, while Thugs is in post-production. The versatile actor is well-known for reinventing himself and taking his career in unexpected directions, and he could do similar again with the upcoming Naked Gun remake, in which he's set to star. The movie represents a departure from the action-thriller genre into more comedic territory and will be Neeson's first major comedy leading role.
While the wait for the remake continues, there is at least no shortage of Neeson's movies coming to theaters with In the Land of Saints and Sinners being the latest thrilling experience.
In the Land of Saints and Sinners is an action crime thriller directed by Robert Lorenz and stars Liam Neeson as former assassin Finbar Murphy, who is in retirement and looking to leave his hitman days behind him. When Murphy's peaceful Irish town is rocked by terrorists who have begun abusing the locals, he slips back into his old ways to deal with them, all while trying to keep his identity a secret from those around him.
