The Liability (2012)

5/10

A light look at the retirement of a hit man. Just OK

kenyajon5 March 2013

Tim Roth plays a hit man on his final job before his daughter gets married. Adam (Jack O'Connell) is an annoying 19 year old who accidentally discovers that his step father is more depraved than he thought. After crashing his step father's Mercedes, he is in his debt and he is given a job as a driver to pay him back. His contact is Roy (Tim Roth) and they go on Roy's last hit together. Wanting to be part of the gangster culture, Adam asks to be more than just a driver and things start to go wrong, especially when 'the girl' gets involved.

The film is quite light hearted, considering its content and, at times is comical. Both lead actors play their parts quite well and create an enjoyable partnership. The storyline is a little week and everything that can go wrong, does goes wrong. I found myself rooting for Adam in the end and, despite being a professional killer, Roth's character is quite appealing.

Overall, a mediocre film that I will not watch again but it was reasonably enjoyable, light hearted and funny in places.

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7/10

Saved by Tim Roth

bowmanblue20 October 2014

The Liability is a British film which doesn't really have a budget. Its script is only so-so and the only real star name attached to it is Tim Roth. Luckily, that does seem to be enough to pull it off.

Jack O'Connell plays a young man who gets in trouble with his - slightly dodgy - stepfather and, as a punishment, is roped into the 'family business' and asked to do something equally dodgy, which involves driving hit-man Tim Roth to his next job.

It's a road movie which could be pretty average if it wasn't for Tim Roth's performance. The comedy doesn't always work. The performances can be a bit stilted, yet Tim seems to carry the whole thing on his own and makes it worth watching.

Special mention to the location scout who has found some truly outstanding filming locations around the north of England to set some of the action in.

If you're a fan of low budget British gangster movies (or simply of Tim Roth) then you should give this a go. The ending seems to divide audiences, but the film is enjoyable enough for you to ignore that minor point if it isn't to your taste.

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7/10

Roth Makes it Work

billcr1224 March 2013

Tim Roth stars in The Liability as a hired assassin who takes on a rich gangster boss's stepson on as a driver. The nineteen year old boy, Adam, is eager to learn about the criminal world. Roy(Roth) has the kid drive to a desolate area for a hit. His first test is to cut off the victims hand with an axe to emulate the pattern of a serial killer preying on the area. A beautiful woman with no name (Talulah Riley), a stunning actress, by the way, shows up and throws a monkey wrench into the crime scene. It then becomes a cat and mouse game between the three with some violent moments with occasional dry British humor mixed in. The three main players are all excellent, and although the ending is a bit too predictable, Roth's laid back wise ass attitude makes the film worth watching.

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6/10

The Last Hit-man

kosmasp27 October 2013

As the German title suggests ... though it does sound a bit like doomsday or something else. Whatever you think of a title, "Liability" is more accurate than the German title. The thriller is pretty straight forward. The story is self explanatory, but Tim Roth does add a lot of Gravita to it. You could almost say he kind of saves the movie all by himself, even though the female lead is beautiful.

The female lead might have a reason for being on screen, but ultimately she is just put on. The very ending feels like it is being dropped on the viewer, which is a bad feeling. The main bad guy, does a great job, but he isn't on screen that much, which is kind of a shame. A nice little thriller, nothing more nothing less

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7/10

Definitely Worth Watching

CharlieHound27 January 2013

Totally unbelievable... but humorous! I still can't decide if it's supposed to be a comedy, a thriller or a gangster movie, or all of the above... Or whether it was just a bit of tongue-in-cheek fun for the writer.

The movie contains a complete mishmash of actors. It's like Laurel and Hardy meets Reservoir Dogs and everything about it is just so wrong but somehow it works! I think Tim Roth is the reason this movie worked so well. The guy is an excellent actor. Jack O'Connell played a fairly good part, too, and even though the movie was quite predictable, it was well worth the watch.

Definitely worth 7/10

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5/10

Not too bad because of the two main leads with Roth & O'connell

lukem-527609 August 2021

Here in England the title is now "The Hitman's Apprentice" & i checked it out on Netflix because i like the rising star JACK O'CONNELL as he's been in a few really good films lately such as "71 & 300: Rise of an Empire & i think he'd one of the best rising British actors working today!!!

Now Tim Roth is abit of a British actor legend with amount of Classic films he's starred in like RESERVOIR DOGS & PULP FICTION for example & i read that one of Jack's favourite actors is Tim Roth so it's cool having these two great British actors teamed up.

Now the story is very basic & it's a Low-budget affair but it's entertaining enough with it's comical crime happenings & dark humour as O'connell plays a 19yr old waster who has to do a driving job for his mum's corrupted gangster boyfriend & that job has him driving for a hitman named Roy (Roth) & they drive around the countryside & its winter & a few darkly funny things happen with certain "Targets" & they end up crossing paths with an extremely beautiful lady who has is on her own path of vengeance for her missing sister that is all connected to O'Connell's mum's vile boyfriend & there's a darker theme of Human trafficking at its centre. There's a fun humourous chemistry between funny O'connell & serious Roth as they both start to like each other on this wild journey of murder & mayhem but really its a short British crime Thriller that never really gets very deep but the two leads pairing is what gives it some life & fun in an otherwise pretty mundane film.

It's an easy watch & not a bad film but it's nothing exciting either.

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7/10

Why isn't this called what it us actually called?

samthejudgeamos20 August 2021

Finding the hitman's apprentice (as was the title I watched) to review it took more time than actually reviewing it.

Interesting film, worth a watch with a couple of good twists to it.

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4/10

Good premise, plenty of potential

Leofwine_draca24 February 2015

THE LIABILITY is an interesting little UK thriller with a good premise: an ageing hit-man takes on a young driver to chauffeur him around to his latest hits. Despite the low budget of the production, such a premise allows for plenty of potential, especially when you put Jack O'Connell and Tim Roth in the central roles.

And, let's be fair, O'Connell and Roth are the reasons to watch this. O'Connell shot the film when he was still working on his profile, and it's full of the same youthful energy and character as his role in TOWER BLOCK. Roth is more subdued and laidback, but there are flashes of the old brilliance here and there.

Sadly, my enthusiasm surrounding THE LIABILITY gradually faded as the story progressed. The first half is decent, hinting at great stuff to come, but it all falls apart in the ridiculous and under-written second half. The introduction of Talulah Riley is the point at which it all becomes a little silly and more than a little dull, and even Peter Mullan's best psycho routine can't save it.

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6/10

To watch once

deloudelouvain9 March 2015

I just finished watching this movie and I expected it to be much better honestly. Certainly when I saw who was playing in this movie. Don't get me wrong the actors were all good. I can't fault any of them for the role they played. It's just that the story is a little bit disappointing. It's not realistic enough and a little bit bland. For a professional hit-man I found that he was doing a lot of mistakes and everything that could go wrong did go wrong. I also would not categorize it under humor because you're not going to laugh a lot. Well at least not me because I didn't laugh once. All in all it's not a bad movie. It's just fine to watch once and then forget about it.

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5/10

Just doesn't have enough meat on the page

adamscastlevania225 April 2015

(50%) Rising star Jack O'Connell comes very near to shinning in this crime drama, but sadly the film just doesn't have what it takes to supplement his talent owing in no small part to a script that just is quite as good as it needs to be. So this is no classic, but it's still a decent watch and way better than the lower end British crime/hooligan sludge you see cluttering the direct to DVD section. Tim Roth is as you'd expect in support (perfectly fine), and the direction tries to lift the somewhat awkwardly told plot, it's just a shame this just doesn't have the depth. Overall not a bad film at all, and worth a look for O'Connell in a early starring role, just don't expect a low budget marvel.

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8/10

A film I'd like to make myself

OJT21 November 2013

A little indie gem this from Britain, with a good Tim Roth in the center as a worn out disillusioned hit-man, but it's Peter Mullan which steals the show, with a delightfully nasty big shot criminal.

There's many reasons to like this, if you don't expect this to be an action flick. It's wrongfully labeled so, but this is a a crime drama, or really a road movie, Coen/Tarantino style. 1) Unpredictable mysterious plot (gives a good ride) 2) Great cool acting (stung cool play by all, but the naive Liability) 3) Extinguished filming (lots if great angles and smart details) 4) Delightful score (sophisticated, punky and dirty, would search out several songs) 5) Classic cars (loved the use and filming of the Granada Ghia) And there's more to it. I found myself feeling it as a cozy road movie which we expect to go wrong for some. Lovely lingering excitement, taking you to the next stop on the route.

If you like one of them smart little films with no extra fuzz, just great talent, this is it!

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6/10

SORRY ABOUT THE FALSE ALARM

nogodnomasters5 December 2018

Warning: Spoilers

Peter (Peter Mullan) is a crime boss who deals in human trafficking. His step-son Adam (Jack O'Connell) is the "son he never wanted." Peter has Adam work for him to pay off a debt. He is to be a driver for Roy (Tim Roth) a quiet reserved hitman as opposed to the chatter-box Adam. As expected things don't go right, but then the film adds an additional twist to it.

The movie is a substandard grindhouse. The music, action, killing, and dialogue are a cut below. Roy steals a Grenada to perform their hit as the car is hot wired, yet has no trouble opening the trunk. Peter lives in a huge house, yet Adam's bed is right next to his mom's and Peter's bedroom. While this makes for film continuity, it is indicative of the missed details and missed opportunity this film had. May be worth a rental to British crime film fans.

Parental Guide: F-bomb, sex, rape.

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2/10

We don't need any more movies like this

waldog200627 July 2013

There's way too much love for this movie on IMDb though I can't help noticing that most major reviewers haven't bothered writing about it. And they're right not to. This is derivative rubbish with underwritten characters, and plotting that doesn't pass muster even if it tries to get by as a black comedy. Tim Roth's character has to be the least interesting assassin on celluloid (or whatever they're using these days): "I haven't killed a woman since 1983." How endearing. Jack O'Connell's character is a moron with sadistic impulses: "Was 'cos I fancied her, that's why I couldn't do it." Presumably, he can only kill women he doesn't fancy. Another charmer. Peter Mullen gets to act nasty with a Scottish accent and use the c-word a lot. Stephanie Beacham lookalike Kierston Wareing is wasted as Mullen's wife. There are no interesting villains, and the only person to root for is on screen for the least amount of time. Each scene is at least twice as long as it needs to be, and the visuals don't make up for the lack of dialogue. I'd rather be eighty-sixed than sit through these 86 minutes again.

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7/10

Hit man meets divot with darkly humorous results

FiveHundredFlicks30 January 2013

It's always difficult to watch a film set in locations you know. Sometimes it works and adds a layer of reality to what is after all, just a story.

And what a story.

If you are in anyway familiar with the sort of character Adam is, played brilliantly by Jack O'Connell, you will know hat I mean when I say "Hit man meets divot" because Adam is a div. A chav. Know worra meen? Yuh get me? Adam is an archetype of what's become of working class youth in Britain: feckless, not very bright, sometimes likable but ultimately, a liability.

As the film plays out there are genuine laughs and some really dark moments. Some expected and some totally unexpected.

The Liability is an instant classic but let's hope that it's not a cult classic and it has the exposure to the mainstream that it needs.

7/10 go see it.

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7/10

Enjoyable movie if you keep in mind it's more of a dark comedy.

badttboy8 February 2013

Warning: Spoilers

This movie should be promoted as a Comedy/Thriller and not as an Action. It is dark comedy and the plot is very unbelievable. The plot was going really good until the Latvian woman appeared from out of nowhere in a remote area. Then to realize later on in the other scenes that she knew and was hunting one of them. How did she find them in the first place and it was presented as an innocent meeting as she appeared to be a lone bag packing hiker/camper and not someone prepared in any way to be on the hunt for villains. If that was not enough, she continued to keep finding in other scenes every time they got separated as if she was using a tracking device or had psychic powers. Oh well. Lucky I did not have much expectations for the plot as I have learned not to anymore or I end up not enjoying a movie. But I felt I had to leave a comment here as I believe it could have been a really great movie had the writer/director taken the time to make some easy logical changes to make it believable. Too bad they did not. Would have then been picked up and done well in the theaters.

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5/10

Much slower & less action then expected. Closer to an art house gangster movie then a full on action one. Disappointing. I say B-

cosmo_tiger25 January 2013

"For a guy to get along in this world he has to be very very careful." When slacker Adam (O'Connell) gets offered a job by his moms boyfriend to drive for a hit-man named Roy he gets more then he bargained for. What starts off as a simple assignment takes a turn for the worse as he encounters murders, sex trafficking and double crosses. I was very much looking forward to this movie. The producers of "Snatch" and "Lock Stock" made me excited to see it. The last movie I remember seeing that line on was "Layer Cake" which was awesome. This one started off a little slow and really never hit its stride. Even though it's about a hit-man and deals with murder and mayhem it is not an action movie at all. I kept waiting for it to let loose and really grab me but it really never did. This is closer to an art house hit-man movie then the type I was looking for and I had a hard time staying interested. Overall, slow moving and hard to stay focused on the whole time. I give it a B-.

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7/10

Enjoyable banter between Jack O'Connell and Tim Roth

bendungate4 August 2021

Warning: Spoilers

We enjoyed this movie not least of all for the chemistry between Jack O'Connell and Tim Roth. Both very adept actors who are able to be funny in the way only British people can be, whilst protraying a serious role.

True to form O'Connell is his usual unlikable toerag character and Roth smokes a cigarette whilst dying slowly from a gunshot wound. The ending seemed a bit rushed but overall it is a good watch.

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3/10

Gangster Comedy with a Pathetic Storyline

bobbybits1 February 2013

Warning: Spoilers

Gangster Comedy from start to finish. Nothing intelligent in this film. Showing gangsters as total morons, why? I had certain expectations after reading "Snatch" "Lock Stock" producers. This film is nothing like Snatch or Lock Stock, as a films are comic although within contain a dark sense of realism and are great to watch. Liability is unbelievable, unrealistic, and is so stupid often making it unbearable to watch.

Adam and Peter are hilarious. Adam the teenager is funny throughout, though becomes tedious when his involvement is nothing more then stupidity. dad Peter the Don is great about the only character worth watching. Roy the hit-man looks like a telly tubby and acts the same.

I was enjoying this film somewhat casually up until the Lativan gets involved with the storyline. From this point there it is plot hole after plot hole woven together to make this film unbearably ridiculous. She robs their car after failing to be shot instantly. The keys were in the car it was unlocked and she sprinted to it so quickly from 5 yards distance from a gunman. They proceed to hijack a 1970's camper van at gunpoint and then stick up a service station threatening customers with a gun. 7000 pounds = 140 50 pound notes. There is no way that there was much more the 20 notes on the ground and 50 notes didn't fit in the coffee cup. Why would they all be 50 pound notes? One thing I really hate with a lot of films recently is the way they show 6 million dollars or something equally as unrealistic fitting into a hand bag. She knew exactly where the camper had gone after the service station, the factory. Also knew where to turn up at the end. I am sure there are so many more holes this film is totally incoherently stupid.

There is comedy throughout and in abundance, the storyline is absolutely pony. The title has warned you 3 out of 10

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7/10

Different and enjoyable

MattyGibbs15 July 2014

The Liability is a darkly comic crime thriller which at least tries to be different from the usual crime thrillers that are churned out ten to the dozen.

It's a slightly surreal film in some ways probably due to characters, some of whom appear almost comic book like although the plot itself is definitely grounded in reality. I found myself hooked from early on and was intrigued to see how it all ended. There are a few scenes to make you wince and a bit of violence but nothing most won't have seen before.

The cast is very strong. I particularly liked the performance of Jack O'Connell as the young lad. He is an actor I've seen in a few other films like Eden Lake and Tower Block and plays the cocky disaffected youth to a tee. Peter Mullan as the villain is excellent. Tim Roth is also good although I wasn't quite what to make of his character or The Girl played by Talulah Riley.

I found this a very enjoyable film that offered something fresh to the genre. Well worth watching.

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4/10

Utterless worthless

heavyfootedsgte26 January 2013

At the time of this writing, it has a rating of 7.9 from 74 users. wow. I know it's a small sample size, but geez....

The movie offers absolutely nothing new to the genre and has no value what so ever. The movie does nothing good. The pace is slow; dialogue is dim-witted; plot has little intrigue. Roth's character is the worst. Completely void of dimension or personality. Or reason for that matter. The Kid is annoying and naïve, but doesn't earn any sympathy. It is a British film, but I assure you nothing is getting lost over me due to my American nationality. It's a bad movie no matter where you are from.

This review is poorly created, but this film doesn't deserve a proper analysis. NEXT!

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8/10

Best British Crime Drama of 2012/13

tgryffin25 January 2013

Although sometimes aimless, "The Liablity" wonderfully weaves an intelligent story of Adam (Jack O'Connell) by playing to the actor's strengths (slow humor, immaturity, cockiness, and a buckets of empathy). When Adam is asked to become the "driver" for his step-dad's hit-man, we run into Roy (Tim Roth) who also does an excellent job. Tim Roth plays the critical role of reality check for the viewer, questioning Adam at every point, giving the movie a great sense of character depth during the dialogues.

In the 'day-and-age' of re-hashed Guy Richie British crime movies, with the same actors, playing the same roles, its really refreshing to see movie that doesn't rely on the same-old intersecting plots, with inconceivable charters. "The Liablity" is also supported by a great soundtrack, some great industrial-cinematography, and solid writing, overall 8/10 and well worth watching.

Think of it as catcher-in-the-rye meets > Léon: The Professional > meets > Skins.

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7/10

A day with a hit-man!

Reno-Rangan14 October 2015

A typical British dark comedy-thriller. I said that because I loves movies like 'Wild Target', 'I Hired a Contract Killer' and now this one. It gives the pleasure to enjoy those running and chasing and mistakes, sometimes very edgy. This is the story that happens within the 24 hours of a 19 year old carefree Adam. When takes-up the driving job to a hit-man, he goes all sorts of difficulties and overcoming it is the remaining narration.

Recently, Jack O'Connell is soaring high with the movies like 'Starred Up', '71' and three Academy Award nominee 'Unbroken'. I would say this film is the turning point in his career. In the earlier films he was merely hanging around with his roles, but he showed lots of promise with this one. Now he's the Britain's latest young sensation and Hollywood is showing interest in him. It's just a matter of time to grab his own spot there.

It is so sad that from the movie posters to promos are not enthralling and the online ratings for it is too low. But it was twice better than what do you see. Of course it was a slow start, but after the opening few minutes, it was completely a different movie and very entertaining. Obviously not a large budget movie, with a limited cast and a decent story, betters the quality that require to be a laudable product.

7/10

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Slow and convoluted

Phil_Chester3 April 2020

This is a weird one. Slow and convoluted, the story is just the wrong side of incomprehensible, which makes it more annoying than entertaining. It has its moments, but the whole adds up to less than the sum of its parts. Although it's good to see a British gangster thriller for a change, this one is probably not worth your time.

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3/10

"It's hard to critique a film that has almost no content"

Jordyboy9522 January 2022

If you have seen even a handful of Jack O'Connells films you'll know he is type cast for most of his roles, and The Liability is no different. Though Jack and Tim Roth's performances are well acted, they were both most definitely hindered by a script that was uninspired and a storyline that was dull, predictable, and lacked any imagination. What can I say? It's hard to critique a film that has almost no content... it's bad, don't watch, the end.

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6/10

A low key British hommage to Tarantino with bursts of violence

vampire_hounddog16 August 2020

A 19 year-old n'er do well (Jack O'Connell) takes his stepfather's (Peter Mullan) car and crashes it while speeding and feels his wrath when he gets home. He discover that his stepfather is into some dangerously shady business that possibly involves people trafficking. The man gives the lad a job as a driver for what turns out to be a hitman (Tim Roth) for a job up in Northumberland.

This low budget thriller pays a good deal of hommage to Quentin Tarantino which includes a standoff in an American diner (with Roth) blended in among the some snappy and black dialogue amongst the sharp violence, while still aiming at more realism than a Tarantino. Mullan is especially menacing as the villain, with Roth playing his hitman as professional but world weary. Then there's also the sexy and mysterious Eastern European woman (Talulah Riley) who always seems to be popping up at the wrong time. The film is filled with lots of plot holes right to the end, but is not only watchable and enjoyable, but also well acted.

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