Ice Road Truckers fans now have something new and exciting to watch. But having Liam Neeson as the middling actioner in the film does not make it interesting as it sounds. It is heightened to The Ice Road with some intentional avalanches, mechanical sabotages, and frantic gunfire. It is surprising how two movies by Liam Neeson are released after those few months in such an economy. Liam is back after The Marksman January release. In both films, he is required to upgrade his skills to save his friends. But his skills are not complex enough to terminate the bad guys, which makes both films not as thrilling as The Grey or Taken. Liam Neeson has been off the game for an extended period. Therefore, his imposing and gruff presence makes the movie a must-watch. The humane and natural perils make The Ice Road dull. With the given stakes and the settings, it is not crazy like it was expected. Jonathan Hensleigh, the director and writer, has done an exceptional action by creating a foreboding tone. The tone has widescreen and impressive vistas whose expanses are snowy and unforgiving.
The Plot
Jonathan represents an opening with a remote diamond mine based in Manitoba, Canada exploding. During the explosion, more than twenty men are trapped inside the mine. As they try to reach methane levels and send messages to the outside world through pipes, a tool comes through their way, which slowly frees them. Liam Neeson playing as Mike McCann is one of the three-truck convoys that treks across icy roads. They have to plow pathways on frozen lakes so that they can eventually reach their destination. Gurty, Mike’s little brother, is an Iraq war veteran and a mechanic suffering from aphasia and PTSD. He travels alongside Jim Goldenrod, an experienced trucker, the missions’ organizer, and Tantoo, a troublemaking woman whose driving is crazy and daring. Her brother is one of the trapped men, so this time her mission is entirely personal. Tantoo gives a hand in laying a balancing act which the truckers must use to strike in. She tries to traverse this dangerous stretch in April. They can get neither too fast nor too slow since they carry heavy gears. They need to be aware of cracks behind them and pressure waves ahead. These obstacles provide tense moments. Though that exposition is essential, The Ice Road characters often explain things to each other. But they are still barely engaging and undeveloped.
Caring Mike
When Mike yells to a doctor telling him to kiss his ass after prescribing opioids to Gurty is not a revelation but given. Jonathan goes back and forth among the miners and the drivers. It is hard to tell them apart since the mine they are trapped in is so dark inside. But the ones we are supposed to be concerned with as they fight for their lives are interchangeable. When an obstacle comes their way, Mike remains the straight man. He takes opportunities when they avail themselves to terminate any menace or charisma. However, he does not conclude by throwing some punches. We understand Mike’s character has little work to be done since he is facing many challenges like taking care of his little brother. However, it is hard to understand how he got such deadly work in the first place. Amid the generically insistent score and the cracking bullets, we get a message on Native land exploitation and corporate greed. Probably you will still want to continue driving trucks with Jim!
The Setting
The Ice Road setup is compelling in addition to the backstories of its characters and each driver’s motivation. The movie is similar to Wages of Fear since its rescue storyline has a ticking clock. For instance, in the film’s first half, a scene entails a truck falling off the ice and needs rescue from the other two. Unfortunately, Jonathan later pumps the stakes in The Ice Road up to 11. He presents the human villain introduction that sabotages the well-heads delivery. The approach is a redundant addition to the scene. It also increases silly distraction hence taking the narrative off the course. The character is featured in every aspect, like in Wacky Races for Dick Dastardly character. He tries to sabotage the heroes now and then. It is similar to The Ice Road, where the story is about Mike versus the bad guys instead of a rescue movie promised in the first half.
The film’s climax results in set pieces for large-scale actions of which Ice Road budget could not convey. However, the earlier scenes that show trucks moving across frozen lakes were enough to cause chills among viewers. The Ice Road film is moving too fast hence able to overcome its wrong turns. It also manages to deliver a product with only a punch from Mike. Unlike Wages of Fear, it is not another trucker version of the movie. However, it is entertaining, which will leave you at the edge of the chair when watching them run across the Canadian tundra. The Ice Road is one of the silliest and most exciting action movies Liam Neeson has appeared in. Others include Cold Pursuit, Honest Thief, and The Marksman.The Ice Road
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