The Commuter (2018)

An action-thriller in which an insurance salesman/ex-cop is caught up in a life-threatening conspiracy during his daily commute home.

Director:

Jaume Collet-Serra

Writers:

Byron Willinger (story by), Philip de Blasi (story by)

Stars:

Liam Neeson, Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Liam Neeson	...	Michael MacCauley
Vera Farmiga	...	Joanna
Patrick Wilson	...	Alex Murphy
Jonathan Banks	...	Walt
Sam Neill	...	Captain Hawthorne
Elizabeth McGovern	...	Karen MacCauley
Killian Scott	...	Dylan
Shazad Latif	...	Vince
Andy Nyman	...	Tony
Clara Lago	...	Eva
Roland Møller	...	Jackson
Florence Pugh	...	Gwen
Dean-Charles Chapman	...	Danny MacCauley
Ella-Rae Smith	...	Sofia
Nila Aalia	...	Sherri

Storyline

In this suspenseful action film, a hard-working life insurance salesman and a caring family man, the former police officer, Michael MacCauley, has taken the commuter rail to New York for the past ten years. But, unexpectedly, things will take a turn for the worse, when on one of his daily journeys, the cryptic passenger, Joanna, makes Michael a generous and tempting offer to locate a single commuter or face grave consequences. Is this a sick joke, or is this indeed a serious situation? As Michael races against the clock to solve this wicked conundrum, everyone aboard is a suspect, in a deal where there's definitely more than meets the eye. Can he decide in time who's the one?

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Plot Keywords:

passenger train | conspiracy | money | hostage | train wreck | 

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Taglines:

Every Passenger Is A Piece Of The Puzzle.

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Genres:

Action | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some intense action/violence, and language.

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Micheal MacCauley (Liam Neeson) meets the Lt. at the bar on his way home the Captain comes in (Sam Neil). He mentions that since his promotion to Captain he spends more time at City Hall than he does on the job, but that it 'goes with the stripes'. Captains & Lieutenants wear bars as signifiers of rank (Lt's wear a single bar and Captains wear two gold bars that look like a section of railroad tracks), only NYPD Sergeants have stripes. He should have said it goes with the bars (or with the rank).

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Goofs

As they are trying to decouple the train's last car, there's an outside shot of the train speeding by. The train speed is high, but not one of the leaves of the trees close to the tracks seems to move.

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Quotes

Jackson: So this is the end of the line.
Michael MacCauley: I guess so.
Jackson: Next time, I'm taking the bus.

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Crazy Credits

The end credits are done in the style of a train map.

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Connections

Featured in Chris Stuckmann Movie Reviews: The Commuter (2018)

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Soundtracks

In the Mirror
Performed by Public Access TV
Written by John Eatherly
Courtesy of Polydor UK Ltd
Issued under licence from Universal Music Publishing Ltd/Universal Music Operations Ltd

User Reviews

Fun movie, worth seeing on a big screen with big sound

Neeson creates a likable, sympathetic character. This is necessary for the heightening of tension, which screws on inexorably until you just don't see any way out for him.

The camera-work was particularly masterful - creative, meticulous, thought out to a granular level. There are two particular action-pieces towards the climax that are breathtaking, at least one of which looks like (but surely isn't) a single, extended take. The camera defines space and gravity, and is part of the expeience.

Yes, there are some credibility straining factors. But it is after all a movie, not a procedural. On the other hand, there are some very neat surprises.

Glad we saw it!

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook (UK) Official Instagram

Country:

USA UK France China Canada

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

12 January 2018 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Commuter

Filming Locations:

Sacramento, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$13,701,452, 14 January 2018

Gross USA:

$36,343,858

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$119,942,387

Company Credits

Production Co:

StudioCanal, TF1 Films Production, The Picture Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1