In the Land of Saints and Sinners (2023)

Yes, it’s another one where Liam Neeson plays a tired killer who wants out, but this time the setting does the heavy lifting. It’s 1974, during the Troubles, in the coastal town of Glencolmcille in County Donegal. Neeson’s Finbar Murphy passes himself off as a bookseller and handles grim jobs for crime boss Robert McQue (Colm Meaney). Then an IRA cell led by Doireann McCann (Kerry Condon) arrives to lie low after a deadly bombing in Belfast, and when Finbar crosses one of its members to protect a local family, the whole town gets pulled in. Condon gives a stock villain real intensity, Ciarán Hinds is lovely as the unsuspecting Garda officer Vinnie, and Jack Gleeson is slippery as a reckless young gun. Robert Lorenz keeps it lean, though it says little about the history around it. It holds an 83% on Rotten Tomatoes. A 6.2 because the cast is terrific and the story is familiar. $5.99 says the quiet guy who runs your local used bookshop suddenly seems a lot more interesting this week.

What works: The Donegal scenery is striking, and Kerry Condon, Colm Meaney and Ciarán Hinds give the familiar story real weight.

What doesn’t: It’s a well-worn hitman-wants-out story that wastes some of its ideas and characters and has little insight into the Troubles.

Who it’s for: Liam Neeson regulars who prefer his quieter, older-gunman mode, and fans of slow-burn Irish crime dramas.