4 Years Later, Liam Neeson’s 108-Minute Spy Movie Surges on Streaming

Mark Wiliams‘ Blacklight stars Liam Neeson as a quintessential Neeson variant. Travis Block, a government operative, specializes in extracting agents whose covers have been compromised when missions go sideways. As he attempts to lay his shadowy past to rest, the lines between friend and foe begin to blur when he brushes up against another agent he once protected. Despite the initial lackluster response upon the film’s release, thanks to Prime Video and Apple TV, Blacklight has gone from a forgettable left-swipe-worthy title to an unequivocal streaming hit.

Throughout the film, a conspiracy boiling just underneath the surface is slowly uncovered through Block’s growing distrust of his superiors. In an attempt to repair the strained relationships, Travis Block attempts to slowly retire from his former life and to heal his strained familial relationships. However, one of the big guys calling the shots, Gabriel Robinson, played by Aidan Quinn​​​​​​, protests this vehemently, thus creating a primary footing of conflict which then forces Block to question everything. Quickly, as two former confidants become adversaries, Block unearths some unscrupulous work Robinson has been doing right under his nose. Emerging journalist Mira Jones, played by Emmy Raver-Lampman, hungry for a salacious story, is hoping to make a story out of this push and pull. However, her naivety and zeal put her directly in harm’s way with only Block to protect her.

The ‘Blacklight’ Critic Vs. Audience Gap

Image via Briarcliff Entertainment

To say there’s just a radical difference between critic and audience reception would be the understatement of the century. Film aficionados have thrown around words like “stale”, “cliché”, and even “unwatchable”. Especially in comparison to Neeson’s legendary work in films like Taken or Cold Pursuit, these scathing reviews aren’t necessarily misguided. Those pictures defined the genre, thus anything that misses that impossibly high mark pales in comparison. Due to the reportedly dull action sequences and disjointed plot, the film received an abysmal and truly shocking 11% on Rotten Tomatoes. With all of this being said, it’s fair to wonder if this espionage thriller is truly so terrible, and more than that, should critics be the deciding factor in a film’s value?

Adversely, in examining the streaming numbers alone, it would express that audiences felt decidedly different. Despite its original box office failure, and terrible critical reception, the film has frequently topped viewership charts on Netflix, Prime Video, and Tubi. In fact, on Netflix in particular, the film has grossed over 13.3 million hours of time watched. Additionally, it also achieved a whopping 82% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Perhaps this is due in part to Neeson’s decorated reputation, convincing fans that a technically bad film is not only watchable but entertaining. Or maybe the cliché, but albeit exciting, quintessential action tropes captured in the film provide the surface-level entertainment streaming audiences want.

In summary, this controversial film, with a truly baffling discrepancy in reviews, is nonetheless soaring in popularity. As far as spy thrillers go, Blacklight has everything one can hope for. Mark Williams captures Neeson doing exactly what he does best, and proves yet again that, against all odds, the actor will remain an undying force in the action genre.