Taken

Taken

Taken - Directed by Pierre Morel, starring Liam Neeson - Rated PG-13

I'm going to keep this one short. Taken is a very entertaining movie about a devoted father who is willing to do anything to save his daughter. Are some parts of it stupid? You bet. The daughter is a bit unrealistic, jumping up and down and running to her father every time she sees him (one time might be okay, but when she sees him at a lunch that she set up, she should not run to him like it's some kind of surprise). Other than that, this is a fun movie just for the fact that some surprising things happen. There might be gunshot here or there that you wouldn't expect, which was refreshing since the movie plays on your expectations. And it's great to see Liam Neeson in action mode. I was just happy to see the guy get a starring role in what turned out to be a very profitable film. Oh, and a PG-13 rating may not have affected Terminator, but it messed a few scenes up in this film for me. When someone gets shot in the face, their should probably be blood, but not in this movie. I'm not expecting a brain splatter against the wall or anything. I'm expecting the filmmaker to cut away and imply the gore if he's not able to flat out show it. Not a huge problem, but it did take away from what could have been an extremely brutal movie.


Crappy Classic: Gravyard Shift - Directed by Ralph S. Singleton, starring David Andrews, Brad Dourif, and Stephen Macht - Rated R

Stephen King movies are wildy hit or miss. This film, about a giant rat/bat creature that terrorizes a textile mill in New England, would probably be considered a miss for most people, but a strangely entertaining performance and the general feel of the movie make it a hit (not financially, of course) to me.



Stephen Macht carries this film. His completely over the top New England accent is hilarious. Lines like: "The show's o-VAH!" make me laugh to this day. Every scene he is in is entertaining due to his performance which makes it a damn good performance in my eyes. People forget sometimes that actors know what they're doing at times. I truly believe that Macht was aware of how fun his performance was. He knew he was in a low rate Stephen King flick (in the early nineties no less, when they were churning out King movies every other week it seemed) and he decided to try something different. And his performance makes this movie stand out.

Aside from Macht, the rest of the movie is quite plain. But the filmmakers did an excellent job of creating a rundown factory. I've worked in an older factory before and I can tell you that this movie captures the essence of a place like that. It's loud, dirty, and looks as if it's been closed down for years, but is somehow still kicking. It's nothing groundbreaking, but it helps make this movie interesting. So enjoy the mood of the film, and laugh with (not at) Stephen Macht and his strangely hilarious performance.

Oh, and Dourif is in there to lend this some horror movie cred. His character is not really necessary, but I didn't mind it because when Dourif gets to cut loose it's always fun to watch.

Eric Harris - www.canneltoncritic.com

Credible Actor/Trashy Film - Liam Neeson/Taken

Taken (2008)
(Read the previous entry for a bold revisionist version of the Taken storyline from some guy I met on the bus)

Featuring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Holly Valance, Xander Berkeley

What’s all this then?: I’ll use bullet points cause we don't have time for this goddamit!

• Taken is sad!
• He’s sad because his 26-year-old daughter Maggie Grace is still pretending to be 17. And she is doing this very badly!
• HOLLY VALANCE
• Famke Janssen thinks a trip to Paris will help their daughter and also Mason from 24 is there.
• Maggie Grace spasticates over to Paris with her friend and, whoops, they get totally Takened!
• Taken is not happy about this, not at all, and intends to track down every Albanian involved in the Takening. Yeah, Albanians, who knew? Or should I say Al-TAKEN-ians.
• The girls have been Takened into the sex takening industry.
• HIGH SPEED CHASE
• After a while Taken locates and then Hostels the head Albanian into finding out who else is involved.
• He infiltrates a swanky party where they seem to be playing electro music. Because France is why.
• TAKEN IS GETTING ON THAT BOAT.
• Famke Janssen is just so happy to have her daughter back, and Maggie Grace really loves her father now for sure. So I suppose it was all worth it…?

And yet: The least believable thing about this entire film is that two 17-year-old girls would want to follow U2 around on their European tour.

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Mini Review: Taken

Last updated: 2010-04-11 21:29:44 by user01

Taken

"I don't know who you are. I don't know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don't have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my daughter go now, that'll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don't, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you."

Liam Neeson stars in this action thriller that takes place mostly in Paris, France. Neeson plays Bryan Mills, a retired CIA operative who has been trying to mend his relationship with his teenaged daughter. His wife has long since divorced him and remarried, to a very rich new husband, and she is not entirely thrilled about Bryan wanting to be part of their daughter's life now, given that he was mostly absent whe she was a child. (Though to his credit, he never missed attending one of her birthday parties.)

Anyway, Bryan's daughter Kim celebrates her 17th birthday at the start of the film. A short time later, she tells her father that she wants to spend the summer in Paris with one of her girlfriends who has relatives there. As she is still a minor, she needs the consent of both parents to travel abroad. He is initially reluctant, but eventually gives in... and gives her an international cell phone so that she can check in with him so that he is sure she is okay.

Shortly after Kim and her friend arrive at the apartment where they will be staying, the two girls are abducted by a group of men wearing black clothing. Fortunately, at that time, Kim is on the phone with her father, and so she is able to tell him what is happening before she herself gets nabbed. Bryan promises to rescue her. At which point the movie shifts into high gear.
The trailers set it up very nicely without giving too much away, as the included the short speech Bryan gives the kidnappers, which is the quote at the start of this review. And that's pretty much what the rest of the movie is about. Bryan catches the next flight to Paris and starts investigating what happened to his daughter and who was behind it. Using his CIA spy skills, along with calling in favours from his former contacts in the area, he methodically tracks down one lead after another, getting closer and closer to his target: rescuing his daughter.

This is also pretty much the same plot as the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie Commando, although the two films are handled quite differently. Still, there are few surprises here, and the plot goes in a straight line from A to B to C. In less capable hands, this would be a serious drawback.

But what we have here, saving it all from being an exercise in tedium, is the strong performance of Liam Neeson playing a role that is a little different than what we've seen him in before. He is driven by one purpose, and one purpose only -- rescuing his 17-year-old daughter -- and will let nothing stand in his way. He has a very commanding screen presence here, very intense.

  The movie is also very violent, with lots of gunplay and fisticuffs. Being a highly trained former spy, Bryan is naturally an expert in both. But he is also not above doing questionable things in his quest, things that would get him arrested if the circumstance were different. And so the movie brings up the question about someone going into morally grey areas for a good cause, something that politicians are having to wrestle with in this post-9/11 world.

The DVD has two versions of the movie: the US theatrical release, and the "Unrated" version. I watched the latter. Some research on the 'Net after seeing the film has revealed that some of the more violent bits were toned down or removed for the US release so that it could get a PG-13 rating instead of an R rating; the same was done for the UK theatrical release.
The movie was co-written by Luc Besson, the man behind films such as The Fifth Element and the Transporter series. This would explain why most of the movie takes place in Paris, as well as the stylized (and expertly-choreographed) violence. The supporting cast includes Maggie Grace (Lost) as Kim and Famke Janssen (Goldeneye, the X-Men movies) as Lenore, Bryan's ex and Kim's mom.

Overall, this is a fun movie if you are a fan of action movies and don't mind violence that goes over the top in a few places. Still, it is Neeson's performance that ultimately carries the film. Part of it is that he is not normally associated with being an action hero. A typical "action hero" actor in the role would have taken it down to the level of a comic book (like the aforementioned Commando), while a less capable actor would have reduced this to a pedestrian shoot-em-up. But with Neeson as the lead, it becomes a better movie than it should otherwise have been.

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Last updated: 2010-04-09 19:38:55 by Xenon

Taken

"Taken" isn't a great movie, but it's entertaining... which is way different than great - just so everyone knows. The entire movie is unbelievable, but I guess few action movies could be described as realistic. And every so often (also known as pretty darn frequently) there's a really awful line that one of the characters gets to say...lucky them. Liam Neeson plays a retired FBI worker, Bryan Mills. Against his better judgement he lets his daughter, Kim, go to Paris with her unbelievably stupid friend...she is so annoying and hormonal, it's ridiculous. Bryan Mill should have definitely never listened to his ex-wife. Kim and her friend get kidnapped and eventually are sold as prostitutes. Lucky for Kim, her dad is played by Liam Neeson and has unbelievable FBI skills so off he goes to Paris to rescue his daughter. Watching Liam Neeson fend people off with guns and such is pretty entertaining...and a nice little contrast to Oskar Schindler. So if one were to watch this movie it would be for one reason...to see Liam Neeson as a force not to be reckoned with. So if that doesn't appeal to you, then don't see it and move on with life. I wouldn't own the movie...but I did get my dollar's worth out of the rental.

Taken

Everyone wants revenge. We’re savages. Two thousand years of Christianity hasn’t dulled the revenge instinct in the slightest. If we’re wronged, we want the wrong doer to suffer. If our children are wronged, we want carnage. In movies (lucky us) we get to act out these revenge fantasies vicariously. Even High Noon is basically saying: they wronged you, now it’s right for you to kill ’em. Through the Seventies and Eighties these movie revenge fantasies might have got more violent, but that only meant more blood; it didn’t alter our desire. In Taken, Liam Neeson kills half of Paris on our behalf. What was the bad-guys’ crime? Kidnap.

The first twenty minutes of Taken are there to make us feel better about what Liam does for the other hour and ten. This is crucial in any revenge movie, as, without assurances the hero doesn’t constantlycommit acts of violence, we might confuse him with the villain (who never seems to act nice). So we see Liam worrying about his seventeen-year-old daughter’s trip to Paris; Liam hanging out with some ex-army buddies; Liam saving a pop star’s life… He’s obviously some sort of former special-forces type, living meekly but honourably in Los Angeles, making efforts not to kill anyone. But when his daughter is kidnapped while on holiday in Paris; it’s a bit like showing a red rag to a bull, if the bull had been in special-forces.

Even Liam Neeson’s nose looks tough. You look at him and you think: oak. He looks like he could’ve been born at any time in history. He could till a field. He could smelt iron. He could wrestle an alligator. And you’d believe him. When people talk about the dignity of work, they’re picturing Liam working. He goes about killing people in Taken like a Victor Hugo character – like a man driven to it by the murderous lassitude of the bourgeoisie. It’s telling that when he meets an old friend who now works in a bureaucratic position in law enforcement, it’s almost as if Liam knows his old friend is crooked because he sits (apathetically) behind a desk.

The movie was produced by Luc Besson, an art-house troglodyte who knows film-making the way some of our more influential ancestors knew their way around a club. Besson made a movie called Leon (a.k.a.The Professional) a long time ago that set out his stall: monosyllabic, borderline-personality-disorder hero meets nubile girl, learns to love, then kills every living thing in his path. Leon attracted a lot of critical attention at the time because Besson seemed to flirt controversially with paedophilia. But his subsequent career as a producer has proved that any dicey material was there because Besson didn’t realise it was dicey (reason being: every female lead might as well be twelve from an action-movie producer’s perspective).

You can tell Taken takes its impetus from a producer by the way it gleefully ignores political correctness flashpoints. The bad-guys are uniformly racial stereotypes (Arab, Eastern European) and there’s never a moment where the writers’ instinct (to grant even bad-guys’ humanity) threatens to prevail. Men are stabbed, shot, strangled, run over, shot, shot again. Liam even shoots one guy’s wife at the dinner table (Liam thought-bubble: “Have that for dessert!”). The movie makes the second half of Commando look tame.

Is there catharsis at the end of Liam’s quest? It’s doubtful. Liam comes home – the way every action-man comes home – to a place where actions have no consequence. Already there’s talk of Taken 2, where Liam could return to Paris and – I dunno – pull out a guy’s spleen with his bare hands. The moral of every action-movie is that violent death has no repercussions. Taken is a fantasy: a) because what happens is unrealistic, and b) because we want to believe bad is bad and good is good. Truth is: if you’re violent to people, you’re a violent person.Taken says: if they’re bad, it doesn’t count.

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TAKEN (2008)

BACK COVER SYNOPSIS: Liam Neeson stars in this action-packed international thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. When his estranged daughter is kidnapped in Paris, a former spy (Neeson) sets out to find her at any cost. Relying on his special skills, he tracks down the ruthless gang that abducted her and launches a one-man war to bring them to justice and rescue his daughter.

FILM REVIEW: “Taken” is one of those simple premise action films that delivers a very satisfying cinematic experience. With Liam Neeson commanding the screen in the lead role of Bryan, an ex-CIA agent with special skills in tackling bad guys, the film has everything going for it in terms of action, suspense and thrills except that it has already been done, most notably in the 80’s B-Grade classic “Commando”. Like that film, the protagonist has a time limit to rescue his kidnapped daughter and turns in to a one-man army to get her back. However, unlike “Commando” which was more 2-dimensional and popcorn like in nature, “Taken” offers a more sophisticated take on this story, largely due to the world that director Pierre Morel creates and the quality acting skills of Liam Neeson. “Taken” is a great thrill ride; believe the synopsis when it tells you that it will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish.
The film opens with the obligatory setup of the characters. This is the film’s weakest point, largely due to the somewhat cringeworthy scenes of Bryan as the overprotective Dad who has a niggling quarrel with his ex-wife and her substantially rich new husband. Motifs of who is the better father and protector, although relevant to the film, are a little silly in this regard and perhaps a little strange, especially considering Bryan’s past as a cold-blooded and ruthless spy. Bryan’s daughter is an innocent who does not fully appreciate her father, even though she is his entire world. However, this opening setup, although obligatory, is also brief. It isn’t long before we see Bryan in action taking a job to protect a famous singer (a well cast Holly Valance) whom he rescues after some eager fans break the barricades and almost kill her. The next day after the job is done, Bryan learns to his dismay that his daughter wants to go to Paris with a friend. Reluctantly he lets her go, despite his fears of what could happen to her in the world. Those fears prove justified when a spotter at the airport tags them in Paris and henchman come to kidnap the two girls. In one of the films best and tense scenes, Bryan eventually ends up on the phone with the kidnapper and gives him a simple choice: either let his daughter go or he will hunt them down and kill them. The kidnapper responds simply with the words “Good Luck”. From then on, the film kicks in to overdrive and never lets up as we see Bryan turn in to an unstoppable machine who makes his way through all the bad guys to get his daughter back.
The casting of Liam Neeson in the role of Bryan was a masterstroke for the production. He lends a strong aura of authority and depth to what could have otherwise been a two dimensional affair. There is an intelligence and quick-wittedness about the way Neeson portrays his character that elevates this film beyond a simple action/revenge film. He really makes you believe how strongly he cares for his daughter and it is in that belief that will pull you in to his plight, and makes you cheer as he takes down the bad guys one by one.
Another big plus working in this film’s favour is its international feel. The director and much of the crew are French. With a setting in Paris, the design of the sequences, characters and visuals give the film has a very strong European film sensibility, even though it has all the plot points and traits of a Hollywood action movie. In this respect, the film is quite unique in many ways, weaving together a stronger, more dimensional and gritty tapestry than what you otherwise would expect if the film had come from an American director who probably would have produced a more bubble-gum style action flick.
As said in the outset, the only real negative about this film is that it is not original. This type of story has been done before and it is more a testament about well this type of story works in the first place that lends “Taken” such a strong feeling of satisfaction with the way the whole thing unfolds. Premise aside however, the film still could have been a disaster if the film had not been executed properly and in this respect, “Taken” comes out on top.
“Taken” is a highly recommended, satisfying action film that is extremely well executed, is brilliantly acted and will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish.

TECHNICAL REVIEW: The film has an excellent transfer. The video is of extremely high quality, without blemishes, scratches or other noticeable artefacts. The audio is well mastered, making full use of the surrounds, particularly in the action sequences where the sound environment will draw you right in to the action. “Taken” has been given a top notch technical transfer.

EXTRAS REVIEW: There are a number of extras on this DVD, making for a package that is complimentary if not altogether comprehensive in design to the main feature. The three main extras are an informative “Making-Of” Documentary, a featurette on the first premiere of the film, and a six part break down of significant action scenes from the movie. The Making-Of Documentary is reasonable, offering more than the usual promotional fluff one might find in a doco like this, including some good interviews with director Pierre Morel and star Liam Neeson. The featurette on the film’s premiere is the most interesting featurette as you do not normally see footage of this type on a DVD, particularly with interviews after the screening of what people thought of the film. The six part action scene break down is a split screen affair with the actual scene and behind the scenes footage shown side by side so you can watch how it was filmed while the scene is being played. This last featurette does not have any commentary so it gets a little repetitive watching a film crew covering the scenes. Overall, this a nice complement of extras although not that fancy or special.

BOTTOM LINE: Worth having in the collection.

FILM RATING: 8/10 -- EXTRAS RATING: 7/10 -- OVERALL DVD RATING: 8/10 

Todd Murphy <br />
http://www.allaboutmovies.net

TAKEN (2008)

BOTTOM LINE: This is a deeply satisfying action film with a great story and cast. The only downside is that it’s been done before in films like the 80’s B-grade classic “Commando”. However, the style and sophistication of the story telling and action sequences, and Neeson’s powerful presence in the lead role, more than make up for its lack of originality.

THE GOOD: Liam Neeson picks up where Arnie left off, playing an ex-special forces soldier who has to rescue his daughter from a group of Albanian thugs who have sold her in to sexual slavery in Europe. Although this story is nothing new (if you don’t know why I referred to Arnold Schwarzenegger in my opening line, then go watch “Commando”), the refreshing aspects in this film reside in the sophistication of its story-telling in emulating the Bourne film series. Much of the film is set in France where Bryan (Neeson) tracks down some dangerous hoodlums who don’t heed his warning when he says he’s going to come after them after they kidnap his daughter. The casting of Liam Neeson in the title role was a masterstroke; not only is he as tough as they come, but he brings a warm, heart-felt feeling to his performance that adds a few more dimensions to what could have been a two-dimensional action flick. The film is set up in an unconventional way with Bryan living on his own, estranged from his wife (Famke Janssen) but on good terms with his daughter. The dynamics of the relationships between these characters are quite rich, which helps us get in to Bryan’s plight when he goes chasing the bad guys. From the start, you want to see Bryan take them all out one by one, and given what they have planned for his daughter, you really do want him to exact justice on these cowardly thugs. The filmmakers have done a great job of making each encounter Bryan has with his targets unique; one particularly satisfying scene occurs when Bryan meets up with the man he spoke to on the phone when his daughter was taken. Bryan calmly says, “you don’t remember do you? Did you really think I wouldn’t find you?” And then bang! All hell breaks loose! French director Pierre Morel makes his influence felt through the style and execution of the images and sequences (although the story has a Hollywood bent, much of the film feels European). The acting is first rate, and surprisingly, Holly Valance shows up in a supporting role and actually does a decent job. “Taken” is in essence a sophisticated version of “Commando”, and it’s a widely entertaining ride.

THE BAD: The only negative going against this film is that it’s not original. The most obvious example of a film with the same story is Arnold Schwarzenegger’s B-Grade action classic, “Commando”, where the big man had only 11 hours to save his daughter after she was kidnapped. A few details are different in “Taken” but essentially it’s the same thing. This isn’t really too bad because the style and casting of “Taken” more than make up for its lack of originality. If one were to nitpick, one might find it a tad unbelievable that one man is capable of doing so many things (ie the one man army), but that’s all part of the fun.

RATING: 8/10

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Todd Murphy <br />
http://www.allaboutmovies.net

Taken

before seeing taken i pondered for some time how liam neeson could fit this kind of role. i mean, he’s old, and he doesn’t really fight. except for that one time with a light saber. but now i know: liam neeson is a bear, and he was hibernating. when he awoke, with furious rage and hunger, he was sent into this film to beat the shit out of everyone. few men are as bad ass as this bear-man is. if i had a choice between fighting chuck norris or liam neeson in a dark alley, i’d pick chuck norris. at least norris would give me a clean death, a warrior’s death. neeson would ruin my mind and maim my corpse. i peed myself just thinking of it. that’s how scared i am.

i bet whatever man taught neeson how to fight is kicking himself now. “look what i created. he’s, he’s unstoppable. does he have no weakness?” the answer is no. he doesn’t.

if you want an action movie where there is nothing but awesome from the beginning to the end, then i suggest this film. if, however, you prefer less action, then you can watch ANY OTHER FILM.

i give taken a 6/7.

http://suckfail.wordpress.com/2010/01/16/taken/

Taken…..took it all the way

I heard all the hype about Taken, so i had to check it out.  And honestly…it was pretty good. I have to give it two thumbs up. Liam Neeson delivered a stunning performance, as a former spy who has to save his daughter from forced prostitution on her trip to Paris. Great acting, great plot and storyline. Here’s a short synopsis of the film for your reading pleasure provided by IMDB.

[quote]The seventeen year-old Kim is the pride and joy of her father, the retired agent Bryan Mills that left the secret service to stay near Kim in California. Kim lives with her mother Lenore and her wealthy stepfather Stuart; she convinces the reluctant Bryan to sign an authorization to travel to Paris with her friend Amanda. When they arrive, they share a cab with the stranger Peter and Amanda tells to him that they are alone in Paris. When Bryan succeeds in contacting his daughter, she tells that criminals have just break in the spot and they are kidnapped by an Albanese gang of human trafficking. Bryan promises in the phone to kill the kidnapper of his daughter and immediately travels to Paris to find Kim and chase the criminals.
[/quote]  I would definitely recommend this movie, whether or not you like thrillers. This one is one for the collection.

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The Wiz

Last updated: 2010-01-10 08:34:56 by user01

TAKEN

Taken stars Liam Neeson as a former spy who uses his special "skills" to find his daughter who has been abducted by a human trafficking gang while visiting Paris. The plot sounds like one from a typical over-the-top movie that's been done plenty of times before, and could've wound up being utter crap. But it's Neeson that really makes it work. This movie is the surprise hit of 2009 so far, raking in over $100 million and with little promotion. The reason for its success is that you have a top-notch actor taking on a non-typical role and excelling at it. It's a wonder to see the star of such movies as Schindler's List and Kinsey (though he's been in a Star Wars and a Batman film) totally kicking ass throughout the film. It's also nice to see Neeson actually smile a few times in the film as opposed to much of his previous work. He ignites passion in the role as you feel his determination to find his only child at any cost.

There is a backstory which explains that he had in fact not always been there for his daughter due to the travel and demands of his work. In the early stages of the movie, you see him struggling to impress her as much as possible and be the best dad that he can be now that he is retired and can devote more time as a father. She lives with her mother and the mother's new husband so he must fight for as much time with her as possible. He's even a bit overprotective of her which causes her to not fully tell him the truth regarding her situation while staying in Paris, thus ultimately leading to her abduction. That's when the action starts to take off. Being a former spy makes the film work as he uses both his skills and various sources he has obtained over the years to accomplish his new personal mission.

Taken never dulls out and stays entertaining throughout. It makes a pretty cool date movie and is the kind of movie you can just watch on your own and enjoy as well. It seems that word-of-mouth is what's made this movie a success at the box office, and I'm passing that word along myself.

Recommendations: The Shawshank Redemption (1994), Se7en , 25th Hour

http://www.examiner.com/movie-in-philadelphia/danny-porcaro

Last updated: 2009-12-22 17:50:56 by thatmoviedude

DVD Review: Taken

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Last updated: 2009-08-16 10:45:34 by edthehead

Taken (2009)

Don’t mess with Liam Neeson’s family. Or just don’t mess with Liam Neeson in general.
While vacationing with a friend in Paris, an American girl (Maggie Grace) is kidnapped by a gang of human traffickers intent on selling her into forced prostitution. Working against the clock, her ex-spy father (Liam Neeson) must pull out all the stops to save her.

This film proves two things: 1) Liam Neeson can act in anything by just playing them, and 2) director Pierre Morel can make some great exciting action-filled movies but cannot write an effective original screenplay at all. The film suffers from its totally lackluster script.

The relationship between Neeson and his daughter didn’t feel real or true at all and if anything it just felt like two actors playing father and daughter. Oh wait for a second that’s what it was, so basically they did just a horrible job at that. Much of the screenplay is very cliched, and most of the lines in this film feel a little too familiar to other action filled movies.

The movie sort of felt like a big-budget 80’s action film where one man fights off against a thousand people. This was cool to see in such a 21st century way but in all it was a laugh fest since the film was very corny and highly unrealistic. Also many of the villains seemed so dumb and not very much of a threat.

The high point of this film has got to be the action. Its exciting, over-the-top, and ultimately very violent. Just seeing Liam Neeson lay the whoop down on some Frenches is a sight to see. The film’s action is completely outrageous but that’s the best thing about the film it keeps you on the edge of your seat.

Liam Neeson also shines very well in this film showing a great sense of raw edgieness that we have seen many times before but this more in a way that makes him dominant. He totally feels like a James Bond that knows kung-fu. Maggie Grace is great as the clueless, naive, rich, spoiled daughter that is kidnapped, while Famke Janssen as the equally naive, and estranged ex-wife of Neeson, pulls her role off well.

The film is very brainless but has a raw performance from Liam Neeson and features some high quality action that keeps you entertained throughout.

7/10=Rental!!!

life has its own ways of working out<br />
visit my movie review site at www.dtmmr.wordpress.com Feel Free to comment or request any movies at any time! :)

Taken

If you’ve seen the trailer for this film, then you will more or less know what this film is about. Liam Neeson’s daughter gets kidnapped ans he goes to get her back using any means necessary. What the trailer doesn’t show you, though, is how action-packed this flick is.
Liam Neeson is quite the intimidating force in this picture. I don’t know about you, but I got chills when he said “…I will find you and I will kill you!” It sets the tone for the whole film and lets the audience know he is not one to be messed with.
Maggie Grace, who plays the kidnapped daughter, isn’t in much of the film, but she does play a convincing victim. The look on her face when she is getting auctioned is enough to break down the strongest of men. One can only imagine what a father would have to be feeling seeing her like that.
There is a lot of mystery going on in the flick, such as what exactly Neeson’s job was before he retired, why the Albanians have been able to get away with trafficking women for so long, and why it is Neeson had to sign for his dauhter to go to France, when she appears to be in the custody of her mother.
As Neeson is tearing across Paris, he “friend” is having him tailed with the intent of having him arrested, all because he doesn’t want to lose his desk job. If there were ever any doubt that Neeson wasn’t playing around, he shoots his friend’s wife to get his point across. Let this be a lesson to us all, don’t mess around with a man looking for his daughter, especially if he has a specific set of skills.
This film is rated PG-13, so I’m sure many of you will avoid it on that alone. Fact is, you don’t even realize the lack of blood and guts flying over all over the screen. Had this have been rated R, we know that’s what we would be seeing, as well as more graphic scenes involving the way he got information from people, especially the torture scene.
I enjoyed this film. Was it perfect? No, but there are no signs of suckage. Everything falls into place and its a good thrill ride. The backstory of a father trying oconnect with hsi daughter is even made stronger when he saves her. Rumors of a sequel are swirling. As good as this was I wouldn’t mind it, as long as it doesn’t regress from this one.

http://thankyounetflix.wordpress.com

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Taken Takes the Cake... And Kicks My Ass

Rated PG-13
Starring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace and a bunch of worthless sex trade thugs/goons.
93 minutes
Currently available to rent
I had heard a lot of good things about Taken before actually seeing it and it turns out the good things were warranted.

In this movie, Liam Neeson reminded me of a movie he made some time ago called “Rob Roy” where he played an 17^th century kick butt Scotsman.  Much like his character in RR, he plays a man named Bryan Mills who’s a retired “preventer” (as he calls himself in the movie) aka CIA operative for the US government.  He gets his kicks now from spending what time he can with his 17 year old daughter whose young life he was mostly absent from while he was “preventing” bad things from happening.

 
Another movie that makes you want to learn how to rough up some thugs

Turns out he has to dust off those old “preventing” skills sooner than he had hoped when his daughter is taken (thus the name of the movie) by some black market sex trade thugs from her hotel room while on a trip to Spain with her best friend. 
Major ass kicking ensues along with some karate chopping, head butting and bullets of the fast-moving and especially harmfull variety.

For any father of a daughter (as I am myself) this movie plays especially prevalent into a caring fathers fears.  Fortunately, Liam Neeson’s character is very good at what he does and you aren’t left with an empty sad feeling at the end of the movie.  I wasn’t sad at all.  I was ready to learn how to disarm someone with my pelvis while kicking them in the balls while slapping them in the face while punching them through a window.

If it’s any indication how good this movies was… my wife even LOVED it.  That’s saying a lot since she never likes any of the movies I buy or rent.

Liam Neeson totally kicks ass in this movie.  Have a mentioned that?

Maggie Grace (of "Lost" fame) plays the unfortunate daughter who is taken and I think she does a good job playing a gangly, innocent, uncoordinated teenager… being that she’s actually 26 in real life.


16 year old Maggie Grace
VS.

26 year old Maggie Grace... YIKES!

The movie is also just over an hour and a half  (93 minutes).  It doesn’t drag on and on which is a definite plus.  It builds the characters just long enough for you to get the idea… then Liam tears all the enemies new assholes.

If you’re watching this movie with your kids… there’s not really any blood and gore.  It’s rated PG-13 so we were initially like “Eh… is this going to be that good?” but were quite pleased with the fact that a movie like this could still capture your attention without a high body count, explosions and body parts.

So I’m going to start this portion of my blog out on a bang and set the standard for movie goodness.  I give Taken five out of five cookies and creame ice creame sandwiches.  Yum.


Go out and see it today… you will not be disappointed.  I promise.

Read more about me and what's in my crazy mind at www.handstowar.wordpress.com

Last updated: 2010-02-08 21:16:29 by papak