It’s cold, but he shaves.
It’s cold, but he shaves.
It’s hard to consider the Christmas season complete without the requisite viewing of White Christmas, Christmas in Connecticut, Elf, and a Liam Neeson revenge film set in the snow. I recently completed a first viewing of Cold Pursuit, in which Mr. Neeson plays a snowplow driver whose son is killed by a vicious drug lord. If you’ve ever loved the classic O. Henry story Gift of the Magi, then you should know that this film also has a plot twist. But first a spoiler alert:
*SPOILER ALERT* Mr. Neeson does not take his son’s passing well, and in a plot twist reminiscent of certain classic O. Henry stories, but not involving hair, he chooses to not let his son’s murder go unpunished. Using his giant snowblowing machine and a sawed-off shotgun, he embarks on a journey of vengeance that eventually takes him to the man responsible.
The film may strike some chords with White Christmas fans, as they share something in common: snow.
In some ways, Cold Pursuit is a much better film because there’s much more snow. But they both have their charms. Pursuit is a strong December film and has many wonderful scenes and comic lines; most of these are him saying something humorous before executing someone.
My only real problem with the entire film - and it’s a tough one to get past - is this: it’s set in the snow, yet Mr. Neeson barely has a beard. He has a bit of rough stubble, and it’s evident that he can grow a full beard. But he doesn’t. This makes no sense. He lives in the brutal cold. He works in the brutal cold. He’s not comfortable being in front of people SPOILER ALERT at the beginning of the film he is awarded Citizen of the Year and doesn’t want to talk in front of people.
Yet he is clean shaven.
It is not consistent with his character or with the brutality of the conditions he lives in. It appears a vanity decision; one chosen to take a few years off Mr. Neeson’s weathered face rather than be true to the character he plays. It’s a small thing, yet a small thing that takes away ever so slightly from our ability to completely believe this snowy tale of family and love.
Again, it’s classic December cinema and aside from this, it’s perfect. But for the sequel, know this, people who made this: give the man a beard. Make us believe.
