Liam Neeson's New Crime Thriller Debuts With Polarizing Rotten Tomatoes Score

Published Oct 30, 2026, 12:39 PM EDT Ryan Northrup is a Senior Staff Writer on ScreenRant's Movie & TV News team, where he has authored nearly 5,000 articles, including features and reviews. A graduate of McMaster University, Ryan began his career in public relations before attending Vancouver Film School. There, he built lasting industry connections and optioned a feature film screenplay. The Mongoose's Rotten Tomatoes score is here. Directed by Mark Vanselow, the action thriller stars Liam Neeson as Ryan "Fang" Flanagan, a decorated combat veteran accused of a crime he didn't commit who leads police on a cross-country car chase. Also starring Ving Rhames, Marisa Tomei, and Michael Chiklis, The Mongoose marks Neeson's follow-up to The Fix (2026), a poorly received action thriller featuring Zachary Levi. Reviews are now being published for The Mongoose, and the film isn't faring much better. On Rotten Tomatoes, Neeson's latest has debuted with a lackluster 21% score from 14 reviews. No Popcornmeter is present yet, but one should take shape after more viewers get a chance to watch the film. A 21% suggests most critics didn't enjoy The Mongoose, but looking at the actual reviews paints a more nuanced picture. Of the 14 published reviews, only three are positive, but these three reviews are more than just "soft" positives. For Film-Authority, critic Eddie Harrison awards the R-rated film a strong score of 4 out of 5, praising the practical action sequences and the "crowd-pleasing story." In Meredith Jill Brown's review for Upcoming Horror Movies, The Mongoose gets a similarly strong 8 out of 10. Brown writes: "A terrific soundtrack, growing support for the veterans, and an unlikely turn when Flanagan is cornered had me smiling." The third and final positive review from Debbie Lynn Elias for Behind the Lens doesn't have a star rating attached, but her language suggests any numerical score would be relatively high: Working with Chris Weir as stunt coordinator and second-unit director, Vanselow stages some truly jaw-dropping action. The film’s vehicle work is exceptional, with precision driving, elaborate crashes, and beautifully coordinated sequences that demonstrate the extraordinary skill involved in making practical action look both dangerous and effortless. Of course, most of the reviews for Neeson's latest action thriller aren't so effusive. In ScreenRant's own The Mongoose review by Alex Harrison, the film gets only a three out of 10. Harrison praises the film's car stunts while bashing the film's "atrocious script." He writes: The only actor who truly manages to make something out of the material is Tomei, whose ability to wring genuine emotion out of a thankless role is miraculous. But it's hard to blame anyone for sleepwalking through this job. In a film that shamelessly co-opts supporting the troops to generate pathos and includes such shortcuts as Ryan asking the car's AI assistant to "make the car's phone untraceable," there's not much chance of taking anything seriously anyway. For KKFI-FM, Russ Simmons awards The Mongoose an even lower score of 2 out of 5. Simmons calls the movie an "absurd enterprise," praising some of the car action but also taking issue with the "bad script." Critic Mike McGranaghan awards only a 1.5 out of 5 in his review for The Aisle Seat, criticizing the movie's "waste" of Tomei, and summing up the experience as featuring "no drama, no thrills, no fun." Combined with The Fix, then, The Mongoose continues a cold streak for Neeson when it comes to action thrillers. Other recent entries like Ice Road: Vengeance (2025), Absolution (2024), and Retribution (2023) also didn't fare well. In the Land of Saints and Sinners from 2024 is one of the few Neeson thrillers to be met with a warm reception from critics. The Mongoose is set to hit theaters in the U.S. on October 30, with a Prime Video release to follow in other regions on November 4. It's unclear how the film will fare with audiences, but it's looking like the title won't be too much of an outlier when it comes to recent Neeson fare. Release Date October 30, 2026 Runtime 98 Minutes Director Mark Vanselow Writers Thompson Evans Producers Al Corley, Bart Rosenblatt, Eugene Musso Cast