"I will find you!"
WOW! This movie was realy good, I cant help but say i 'thought' it would be worth a watch, BUT i was wrong. Taken is one of the best action films yet!
Taken is how a contemporary action adventure should be done.
I was initially taken aback by Liam Neeson in the lead role, as the dramatic actor isn't exactly known for kicking and shooting. Turns out, that's the appeal of the film, however.
Liam Neeson stars as Bryan Mills, who we can assume did some pretty shady, black-op type things for the government. Now divorced and retired, he finds himself competing for the attention of his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) with her new richer father (Xander Berkeley), while being constantly at odds with his ex-wife (Famke Janssen). Against his better judgment he allows Kim to go on a vacation with a friend to Paris and as if he predicted it, he receives a call from Kim right as kidnappers are taking her friend and coming after her. From piecing together the background noise he overhears, he places them as an Albanian group with their hand in drugs and the sex trade. It's up to him to fly to Paris and put his particular set of skills to good use in order to save his daughter.
What follows is really a string of martial arts, gun battles, explosions, and car chases. The movie goes by in a brisk hour and twenty-five minutes and for the most part it's a well-made thriller with a good central performance from Liam Neeson. It's his show for most of the movie. Besson isn't interested in the heartbreak of the parents back home or what horrible things the girls being preyed on are suffering. Even the villains remain off-screen and one-dimensional for most of the time, unless Neeson is beating the bloody crap out of them.
And i mean beat the SH#! out of them, very intense PG13 film by the way.
What Besson (and I'm sure the people looking to see this movie) is interested in is an intimidating bad-ass who knows how to kick-ass and take names without mercy and Neeson covers that and more. He also shows the sadness and finds the humanity in a man desperately trying to find his daughter.
Make no mistake, there is a point to this film other than "the end justifies the means" or "a father needs to save his little girl". It also sheds light on the very real threat of young women traveling overseas who get taken for white slavery rings. Do the research on this topic and you may find jarring reports and articles on the subject. This is a very telling and appropriate film for a topic such as this.
The direction is solid on this film. The flash and spin of a car chase is handled, almost mimicked, like Paul Greengrass handled the Bourne films. This film is steeped in realism and the visuals kept in that framework.
overall, a great movie, must see!
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