Taken: Review By Rama's SCREEN

Let yourself get TAKEN on this hardcore, high-powered, relentless thriller to annihilate those who dare to mess with an ex-CIA agent’s family. If someone you love got kidnapped, who you gonna call? Liam Neeson! Because he will kick all doors and… bust all chops and electrocute the bastards just to get your loved one back. TAKEN hits the gas pedal since the beginning and doesn’t shift gear. Those of us who just want pure adrenaline rush, those of us who love to see vengeance in action, those of us who want to see bad guys get what’s coming to them will absolutely enjoy TAKEN.

I’ve always known Liam Neeson was a badass but you ain’t seen how badass he can be until you see TAKEN. It literally puts him in the same level as Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry. You can see Neeson’s anger and frustration as he tries and tries to find his daughter. He’s vulnerable and invincible at the same time. Just like the myth about superhuman strength that a person suddenly attains when cornered with a life and death situation, you see Neeson’s character at times gaining that extra boost because of refusing to die before he rescues his daughter. The thing with TAKEN is that it feeds off your desire to inflict harm on those we think are criminals. Instead of a masked vigilante, you have this old dude who’s only got years of spy knowledge to help him through his possibly most important case. He’d break the rules in the process if he needs to. He’s a like an older version of Jack Bauer whose killer instincts are still intact when needed.

Writer/Producer Luc Besson has disappointed me by associating himself with Transporter franchise and Revolver but he’s redeemed himself with TAKEN.. it’s as hardcore as Nikita and Leon the Professional but with less dialogue and 93 minutes of pure sheer intense action one after another.

Is it just me or is Femke Janssen addicted to playing the role of estranged wife? (The Wackness)

TAKEN leaves us in awe with Neeson’s character’s ridiculously sharp memory that can remember a voice heard long ago. All he’s got are skills that can be acquired through years of proper training and this is what I think will make the audience enjoy this character because it can be anyone of them, not to mention fueled by rage and the thirst for payback, the perfect ingredient for an awesome time at the movies.