Liam Neeson’s career has taken one of the stranger trajectories in recent memory. Beginning as a prestige dramatic actor whose stunning performance in “Schindler’s List” earned him an Oscar nomination, he was one of few with the gravitas to be the voice of God in the “Narnia” series. Though he had a brief stint as a Jedi in the maligned 1999 “Star Wars” prequel, few would have thought of Neeson as an action star.
That was, until 2009’s game-changing hit “Taken,” the film that still sends chills down the spine of any student about travel abroad. Playing the ultimate protective papa bear, Neeson channels Jack Bauer by way of Dick Cheney with such tenacity that it led to reprising various shades of the role in “Clash of the Titans.” And “The A-Team.” And “Unknown.” (Heck, it’s already at the parodic stage as shown by “A Million Ways to Die in the West.”) Neeson can now go on “Saturday Night Live” and threaten Vladimir Putin, presumptively as … himself.
“Non-Stop” may well be the zenith of the Neeson craze, signaling the point at which pop culture accepts him as a Chuck Norris or Steven Seagal-type figure. His larger-than-life presence on the screen now apparently means we can and should accept a heightened state of suspension of disbelief. Neeson might as well wear a cape because he’s a superhero in our real world that doesn’t involve aliens, time travel, or any other Marvel gimmick you can think of.
Marshall and the Movies 
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