After those three formulaic Taken fluff pieces, you could be forgiven for approaching this Liam Neeson actioner with some misgivings. But the Irish actor does, from time to time, make grittier, more grown-up films, especially when he’s working with Jaume Collet-Serra, who directed him in Unknown and Non-Stop.

Here he plays Jimmy Conlon, a once-feared mob assassin nearing the end of his shelf life, and a lonely, laughable, drunk wracked with guilt and regret. His only true friend is Shawn Maguire (the great Ed Harris), the boss for whom he has killed 18 men over the years. Their scenes together are terrific, and anchor the film.

When his estranged son by chance witnesses a double murder committed by Maguire’s hothead son, things get out of hand, and Jimmy has to shoot Shawn’s boy to save his own lad—which resets all the rules and leads to the title all-night chase (including one unique stretch where the cop car is the one being chased), and a rising body count.

Ex-rapper Common puts in a fine performance as an ice-cold hit man. There’s one clichéd, family-in-peril scenario toward the end, but otherwise, this one’s stylish, kinetic, believable, and ultimately satisfying. (114 min)