Travis Brock sure won’t be mistaken for a youngster, but he still makes seemingly less-than-wise choices like a teen who isn’t old enough to know better. When he’s casually driving his Dodge Charger at 95 m.p.h., or turning propane tanks into homemade bombs, you wouldn’t think he was a retirement-age grandad who just wants to spend a little more time with his sweet granddaughter.
But that’s the paradox of Travis’ world: A little grandpa playtime mixed with a lot of breaking-and-entering, extortion and physical coercion. You see, he’s been an off-the-book fixer for the FBI for most of his life. A man who lives, and who works his “magic,” in the shadows.
Part of Travis’ job is also covering up for special agents who have blown their cover and find themselves in difficult situations. And during one such task, the weathered fixer discovers a secret FBI program he never knew existed.
In fact, this shadowy operation is something he’s not supposed to know exits. Operation Unity is killing private citizens and being run by FBI chief Gabriel Robinson, the one man Travis thought he could trust unwaveringly.
Refusing to murder for the government is one of those lines that Travis Block has long refused to cross. Other people, apparently, aren’t so hesitant. And now that he’s asking questions and picking at the truth, those other folks have got an eye on him—and on his daughter and granddaughter. It may all be bluff to force Travis to keep his mouth shut. But that doesn’t sit well with this particular old guy.
He may be a bit long in the tooth, but Travis knows his stuff. And if there’s one thing that can push him across that killing line, it’s anything that puts the people he loves in danger.
Travis really does want to slow down and spend more time with his granddaughter, Natalie. Ever since the girl’s deadbeat dad jumped ship, Travis has felt compelled to be a solid male figure in the little girl’s life—something he wasn’t always very good at with daughter Amanda (Natalie’s mom).
Amanda, however, is very protective of Natalie. Travis struggles with OCD, something he’s actually put to surprisingly productive use in his profession. But Amanda is afraid it’s wearing off in bad ways on the little girl—who regularly makes rounds at home to make sure all the doors are locked. “You might be the one turning her into a crazy person,” Amanda cries. Natalie, on the other hand, loves both her mom and grandfather unconditionally. And Travis and Amanda work at being a closer, loving family who work together and focus on Natalie’s needs.
Travis also crosses paths with an earnest young reporter named Mira. She wants to advance her career as a journalist. But she risks her life to publicize the truth about Operation Unity once she realizes how terrible it is. And Travis puts his life on the line to help her and protect her—along with every other innocent in the line of fire.
None.
None.
There are a lot of thumping fist fights and car chases in the mix here. Travis is older but still trades blows with a number of younger men, giving him bloody gashes on his face and bullet in his leg. The chases—involving a variety of cars, SUVs and a large trash truck—end up smashing vehicles in the street, flipping them and setting them on fire. Speeding vehicles also careen pell-mell through pedestrian areas, causing innocents to leap and tumble for their lives. Elsewhere, police and armed opponents stand off against each other with guns drawn.
There are also some much more deadly and bloody battles between men with high-caliber weapons. Men are electrocuted, riddled with bullets, and slashed with knives. The deadliness is bloody without being gory. A woman gets mowed down by a large SUV. (We see her crumpled and bloody in the street.) A guy crashes his car and then has his neck snapped by a killer. A large truck flips in the middle of a city street. A vehicle is blown up by a grenade launcher.
There are a dozen exclamations of the s-word and one use of “eff-ing.” Those are joined by one or two uses each of the words “h—,” “b–tard,” “b–ch” “d–n,” and “a–hole.” Jesus’ name is misused once.
A worried agent sits in his car drinking booze and washing down prescription drugs. Travis pulls a beer out of his fridge—which features rows of well-organized beer bottles.
The FBI director, Gabriel, proclaims that fear is what gets politicians elected. And fear is what will keep the masses in line and give the government the power they need. He notes that “history tells us that spilling a little blood is absolutely necessary to maintain law and order.” Gabriel also lies repeatedly to his supposed friend Travis in an effort to get him back in line.
Let’s face it, Liam Neeson action films have almost become a genre unto themselves. (Or perhaps a parody unto themselves would be a more accurate description.) This time Neeson is a grandfather/FBI fixer with a certain set of skills that, well, you wouldn’t want him using around the kids.
Blacklight, however, is a particularly ham-fisted entry in this popular Irish actor’s filmography. The script is overwrought and illogical, the plot points are as predictable as a train schedule, and the acting is pedestrian.
It’s not the foulest, most bloody nor most violent pic around, but it definitely has a messy side. And you won’t need an ultraviolet light to pick up on it. That’s if your eyes can stop rolling long enough to pick up on much of anything.
After spending more than two decades touring, directing, writing and producing for Christian theater and radio (most recently for Adventures in Odyssey, which he still contributes to), Bob joined the Plugged In staff to help us focus more heavily on video games. He is also one of our primary movie reviewers.
