Formerly a detective with the NYPD, now a recovering alcoholic haunted by regrets, Matt Scudder (Neeson) has a lot to make up for. When a series of kidnappings targeting the city's worst drug criminals escalates to grisly murder, the circuit's ruthless leader convinces Scudder to find the culprits and bring them to bloody justice. Working as an unlicensed private detective, Matt sees what the police don't see and treads where they most fear to. Operating just outside the law to track down the monsters responsible, Scudder stops just short of becoming one himself.