I’ll just put it out there: Is Liam Neeson part of some elaborate fraternity prank? Blackmail? A fan of career suicide that borders on professional masochism? It’s as if his latest thriller—a sequel, no less—Ice Road: Vengeance—inspires a new kind of acronym: “Box Office Disasters Starring Neeson” (BDSMN).
A sequel no one asked for to Netflix’s COVID-era release The Ice Road, Ice Road: Vengeance is a mind-numbing, atrocious, and utterly ridiculous piece of trash cinema—a true embarrassment of humiliation. Why on earth does Neeson keep signing on for scripts so far beneath his talent?
Ice Road: Vengeance Review and Synopsis
Liam Neeson in Ice Road: Vengeance (2025) | Image via Vertical Entertainment
Liam Neeson and Bingbing Fan in Ice Road: Vengeance (2025) | Image via Vertical Entertainment
Liam Neeson in Ice Road: Vengeance (2025) | Image via Vertical Entertainment
Liam Neeson, Fan Bingbing, Grace O’Sullivan, and Mahesh Jadu in Ice Road: Vengeance (2025) | Image via Vertical Entertainment
Fan Bingbing in Ice Road: Vengeance (2025) | Image via Vertical Entertainment
Here’s an actor who once starred in Schindler’s List, Rob Roy, Husbands and Wives, Batman Begins, and even a Star Wars film. So why has this legendary performer pigeonhole himself into a cycle of cheap Taken knockoffs? One can only hope the upcoming Naked Gun can break the cycle.
Yet here we are, following the adventures of Mike McCann (Neeson), who—after surviving the frigid ice roads of Winnipeg—is now on a journey to lay his brother’s ashes to rest on Mount Everest. His younger brother, Gurty (Marcus Thomas), had one final wish: to have his ashes scattered on the summit, fulfilling a lifelong dream.
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Mike buys a one-way ticket to Nepal. At the start of his trip, he must transfer Gurty’s ashes into an approved container (for obvious reasons—you can’t run a metal urn through a scanner). Upon arriving in Nepal’s vibrant capital, he befriends Dhani (Fan Bingbing), a guide whose calm demeanor masks obvious military training and experience.
Ice Road: Vengeance is Utterly Ridiculous Trash Cinema
Liam Neeson in Ice Road: Vengeance (2025) | Image via Vertical Entertainment
On the bus climbing the treacherous route known as the “Road to the Sky,” the group is nearly taken hostage by a band of paid mercenaries. Thankfully, Mike and Dhani know how to kick ass, take names—and look, well, not-so-great doing it. They manage to fight off the hired killers and arrive safely, only to discover that it was the least of their problems.
The group finds itself caught in the middle of a conflict between a local community and politicians eager to cash in on developers gentrifying the village, environment be damned. That’s a hydroelectric dam, by the way. As the film progresses, the script thrusts Neeson into the classic white savior role, bonding with the locals in a fight for some righteous justice.
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A sequel to the Netflix (hit?) film, a streaming offering to the pandemic Gods. That movie followed the trash cinema playbook, knowing a big-name supporting player will die, villains will die, and the star will survive. That version at least has an interesting premise and point of view. Like a real-life Ice Road Truckers turned into a movie based on a true story.
Is Ice Road: Vengeance worth watching?
Liam Neeson and Fan Bingbing in Ice Road: Vengeance (2025) | Image via Vertical Entertainment
This version is dull, bloated, and hollow. Somehow, the film is stretched to nearly two hours, padded with gratuitous violence against innocents to justify Neeson’s actions, making the scenes easier for audiences to digest. Sure, the future Frank Drebin Jr. still knows how to throw a solid punch, and Bingbing shows a flair for action with a touch of style.
Ice Road: Vengeance isn’t worth watching, for all the mentioned reasons. On top of that, it feels like an entirely unrelated script from Jonathan Hensleigh (Armageddon) that’s been awkwardly retrofitted into a cheap knockoff sequel to a film no one remembers. Toss in a single scene featuring a road with a bit of snow and ice, and you’ve got an exercise in brand recycling at its laziest.
You can watch Ice Road: Vengeance in theaters on video-on-demand June 27th!
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