Ice Road: Vengeance: Movie Review

Cast: Liam Neeson, Fan Bingbing
Director: Jonathan Hensleigh

2021's Ice Road saw Liam Neeson get behind the wheel of a big rig and exact vengeance on those who crossed his path in a story that was suited for streaming and leaving your brain at the door.

The sequel, some four years later, comes unwanted and in truth, feels depressingly like Neeson's phoning it in for a paycheque rather than anything vital or compelling.

This time, setting out to honour his dead brother's wish to scatter his ashes on Mount Everest, Neeson's Mike is grappling both survivor's guilt and an uncertain career path. But as he boards a Kiwi Express bus to take him across Nepal, he finds himself caught in a mercenary war and a fight to get a hydroelectric dam built as part of an illegal land grab.

Cornered by mercenaries and trapped in a battle he wants no part of, Mike must once again use his very particular set of skills to try and save the day.

There's little original on display in this, an action thriller that ticks every rote box it can.

While Mike's initially sidelined from doing any driving, events soon conspire against him and he's back behind the wheel, ducking bullets and dishing up ass-whoopings in between the bullets being fired his way.

But most of the time, Neeson looks weary and drained as Mike in this, with much of the action feeling like it's a strain for him to achieve. It's little helped by the fact proceedings are delivered in such a workmanlike way that the whole thing isn't remotely fun when it could be.

Cramped coach-based ass-kickings are simply a case of choreographed fights that are largely led by Mike and Fan Bingbing's Nepal guide turned ninja Dhan but lack a feeling of any kind of urgency.

Clocking in at just under two hours doesn't help either and while it lacks some of the edge of The Ice Road and the element of surprise, Ice Road: Vengeance makes a strong case for Neeson to stop with these VOD films and their middling deliveries which continue to tarnish his previous outstanding career achievements. 

Ice Road Vengeance streams on Prime Video from September 3.