The Ice Road (2021) : Liam Neeson’s Chilling Adventure Falls Flat
The Ice Road: A Lackluster Action Thriller With Liam Neeson
If you’re a fan of “Ice Road Truckers” and wished it had more high-stakes action, then The Ice Road might seem like the answer. The movie promises a mix of high-speed truck driving, sabotage, and perilous avalanches, but it quickly proves to be a thoroughly average Liam Neeson action film—one that doesn’t live up to its exciting premise.
After starring in The Marksman earlier in the year, Liam Neeson returns in The Ice Road, playing Mike McCann, a trucker tasked with delivering life-saving equipment to a diamond mine in Northern Canada after an explosion traps workers inside. The convoy’s dangerous journey across icy roads through treacherous terrain sets the stage for what could have been an intense thriller, but the execution feels flat. While Neeson uses his signature set of skills—bravado and physicality—neither this film nor his previous one offer the same gripping thrills that audiences expect from his past hits like Taken or The Grey.
The film’s premise starts with promise: a mine explosion traps a group of miners, and a convoy of truckers must navigate the perilous ice roads to deliver the necessary equipment. But despite the setting’s potential for heart-pounding action, the plot quickly loses steam. Writer/director Jonathan Hensleigh sets a foreboding tone with stunning snowy vistas, but the action sequences remain generic and underwhelming.
Joining Neeson’s character is his younger brother Gurty (Marcus Thomas), a mechanic and Iraq war veteran battling PTSD and aphasia. Alongside them is Jim Goldenrod (Laurence Fishburne), the seasoned trucker who organizes the mission, and Tantoo (Amber Midthunder), a fiery Native woman whose brother is trapped in the mine, making this journey personal for her. There’s also a corporate actuary (Benjamin Walker) whose true motives remain unclear, adding some intrigue to the mix.
As the convoy makes its way through the ice, the tension should have been palpable. The truckers must carefully balance their speed to avoid cracking the ice under the weight of their trucks. While these moments are suspenseful, they are few and far between, overshadowed by too much exposition and not enough character development. The dialogue often feels forced, with characters simply standing around, explaining the dangers they face. Neeson’s gruff persona is still there, but his character doesn’t get much opportunity to show the charm or menace that he’s famous for. The other characters, too, remain largely forgettable.
Despite the action-packed premise, The Ice Road ultimately fails to capture the excitement one would expect from such a setting. The film offers a few tense moments and some heavy-handed commentary on corporate greed and the exploitation of Native lands, but the execution leaves much to be desired. By the time the credits roll, you’re likely to feel that the movie could have been much more than the sum of its underdeveloped parts.
In the end, The Ice Road might have you wishing you were watching Ice Road Truckers instead, as it’s a surprisingly dull ride, given the high-stakes narrative and tough-guy cast.
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