Jaume Collet-Serra's new Liam Neeson driven action-thriller, 'The Commuter,' follows Michael McCauley (Neeson) on his daily commute home when he soon becomes trapped in a deadly mystery after meeting a mysterious woman (Vera Farmiga) who offers him $100,000 and presents him with a deceptively simple task: Find Prynne.

The pros: true to the action-thriller format

'The Commuter' recognizes what it is: an action-thriller. McCauley races against the clock to figure out the conspiracy, the fight sequences and stunts are perfectly directed and the plot ultimately fulfills your expectations. He fights, he punches, he wins, he loses, he saves the day. The movie never forgets what its foundation is and effectively heightens the tension to increase the sense of urgency while steadily solving the mystery in a way that never loses steam or otherwise bores the viewer.

At the basic plot level, McCauley is tasked with finding Prynne in the dense environment of a New York subway train during rush hour. Often the film indulges in long shots to show the expanse of the train which is a delight since the space of a crowded metro can seem constrained at times because the actors and the camera are only granted a latitude of a few feet with which to work and move.

Thus, the camerawork takes great lengths to hold steady while the train zooms along the tracks to show the length of the environment and expertly weaves through the punched holes of the tickets, through the windows and passageways connecting each of the cars to show the amount of passengers while simultaneously making sure each character, or suspect, is highlighted in the packed cars so the audience never forgets their faces.

The action also revels in long takes specifically during the fight sequences, never cutting away from the action to barely giving the audience time to blink until the fight climaxes and both the characters and audience are allowed a brief respite.

The cons: destination over journey

Unfortunately, while the film relishes in long takes (think: 'Birdman'), logical deduction (think: Sherlock Holmes or even Guess Who?) and nonstop action, it lacks character identity and emotional depth. McCauley is portrayed as an average joe--he's an ex-cop who has been working as an insurance salesman for the past 10 years living "hand-to-mouth," qualifying other people's insurance and life investments while having little to show for it himself. The film relies heavily on the mundanity of his profession to identify McCauley as an unassuming and therefore perfect candidate for the mystery on the train to envelope and consume him. But there's little more to go on than that. We do meet his ex-partner in the bar after McCauley is fired and they talk about the good ole' days and discuss McCauley's family, specifically how his wife will react to his recent firing, but again, only superficial details are revealed.

The suspects on the train are also treated in a similar fashion, the mystery of the true identity of Prynne overtakes any other interest in originality of individual motive. In other words, we don't really care who the mysterious Prynne is as a person because we aren't given more than cursory, general information about each passenger. The movie is more focused on the destination than the journey.

While the action in the film aids in the tension, since we immediately see the consequences and physical toll this clandestine investigation has on McCauley and the people he cares about, the relationships between characters don't emphasize individual traits and leave the audience with the knowledge such as that these characters are friends or colleagues but we aren't privy as to why. That causes a disconnect in the viewer between the actions and the humans behind those actions.

The film relies on the audience's interest in action movies, the tropes that serve as its foundation and the star power and typecasting of Liam Neeson as a non-stop action hero to keep the thrill alive. The actual character Neeson portrays is not shown to be a trained fighter or detective, other than the casual mentioning of his past seven years as a cop. So the qualities McCauley has that allow him to actively solve the mystery rely more on Neeson as a proven action star than in the character given to the audience on the screen.

Additionally, the clunky, predictable dialogue and the "I'm Spartacus"- esque ending is laughable. But I digress.

Metropolitan detective fiction: modern Agatha Christie?

In defense of the movie's style, the plot, action, and mystery are tightly contained within the literal space of the train. The plot is highly reminiscent of the golden age of detective fiction, the lounge and the study are traded out for cable cars and the aristocratic estate is moved to a busy New York subway, but at its heart, the lone detective must deduce who the culprit is.

You can even see the different classes forced together in a small train car much like the grouping of servants with stately nobles in Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple canon--the nurse, the outcast teen, the car attendants and train personnel, the Goldman-Sachs representative, the high-schooler doing her homework are grouped together with of course the insurance salesman/ex-cop at the center of it all. The diversity in the individuals is reminiscent of the variety of suspects one expects to find involved in the murder mysteries of the detective fiction.

'The Commuter' acts as a take on the whodunnit genre set to the modern aesthetic of a bustling train and recalls 'Murder on the Orient Express' not only its setting but also the conversation McCauley has during a game of Texas Hold-em which acts as a battle of wits to test his theories and narrow the suspect pool.

McCauley is not a private detective or an agency man (think: 'The Maltese Falcon' or The Continental Op) he is not some brilliant mind like Holmes or Poirot who analyzes the scene carefully and neatly presents the appropriate theory to the governing bodies. But what McCauley does have is police experience and the know-how to narrow down the suspects to finish with a gripping finale, a plot twist, and a neat ending. And while his police experience is not heavily emphasized in the movie, it is clear that the subtle hints were intended to be recognized and carried throughout the film.

The film mixes action with detection and chooses to test the brilliant mind during unconventional games of poker and fistfighting. Trading the pen for a gun and taking pleasure in modernizing classic themes.

3/5 stars

Collet-Serra's film is not without its faults, but the energy and pure enjoyment of the film are undeniable and the attempts at melding early 20th century whodunnits with modern action cinema are altogether engrossing to watch on the big screen.

My opinion? Catch it in the theater or when it inevitably airs on FX, but don't buy the Blu-ray.

Check out 'The Commuter' NOW in theaters and IMAX or watch the trailer here. Is the action enough to forgive the lack of character? Is this a modern action take on the detective fiction of old or just a standard action-thriller? Let me know what you think!