Taken

I saw this movie tonight at the sneak preview and I was completely surprised and blown away. I went to see this movie with no expectations. In the beginning it seems that it was going to be an easy to watch movie, but after a short time it turned into a high-speed action movie. I found the story original and so did my friends. At some times I found it hard to watch, because of the drug abuse and violence. To know that these practices still occur also gave me a horrible feeling. I was completely taken away by this movie. At some points it was very very quiet in the cinema, because of the excitement, you wonder what is going to happen next. Some moments in the story I found a bit not convincing, but the rest of the movie makes up to that. Liam Neeson in one of his best performances. It had good action, a good story, some humor. There are also some sensitive / sentimental scenes. There are no plot twists. It is just a story being told. This is one of those movies which stay in your memory for a while and let you think about bad things that happen. The movie that had that same effect on me was Traffic (2000). Personally I think this movie is underrated, but maybe this is because it is new. I would give it 8/10.

A no nonsense, kick the crap out of everyone who gets in your way action movie. Liam Neeson's character is the angry love child of Bourne,Bond and all the other pretenders put together. If I was asked to cast the movie I guess he wouldn't have been my first choice but having seen it I can't think of anyone else I'd rather have in the role. The fight choreography is bone crunchingly good. This is one kick ass flick and one I will definitely buy on DVD. There's little doubt who the bad guys are and they get a very satisfactory smack in the mouth - when they aren't being shot or electrocuted. This was made by people who like the genre and know how to get an action movie from A to Z. I can't help but giggle at those reviews that mention plot and probability in this kind of movie. What kind of movie did they think they were going to see?

Much of what occurs in Liam Neeson thriller Taken is incredibly implausible, but with suspension of disbelief turned up to eleven, the film proves to be an extremely satisfying viewing experience—a brutal action flick that effectively exploits that most basic of human emotions: the desire to see the wicked punished.

Neeson stars as ex-special forces operative Bryan Mills, who kicks seven shades of the proverbial out of the Albanian human traffickers who are stupid enough to kidnap his teenage daughter Kim (Maggie Grace).

Although the film's star is well into his fifties, Neeson shows no sign of taking it easy in his old age, kicking, punching and blasting his way around Paris with the energy and power of man 20 years his junior. Director Pierre Morel conducts all of this mayhem with style, and doesn't skimp on the nastier stuff, having Mills mercilessly torture his victims for information, kill without a moment's hesitation, and generally act like a total bad-ass—enough of a bad-ass to make it easy to forgive the film's sillier aspects.

7.5 out of 10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb.

Since the entire plot of this film is given away in the masterfully delivered trailer, it's not divulging anything to say that Taken is a modern-day revenge thriller. This presents an interesting experiment, actually. Considering that there aren't really any surprises to be found in Taken, beyond those we were offered in the pre-release snippet, are splendidly realized action sequences enough to carry this film? The answer here is a resounding "yes". Taken may be a simple film, but it's not simplistic, and even though the first third of it is spent recapping what we knew going in, the second and third acts here deliver enough thrills and action to make this film riveting, even if we know exactly where it's going.

By setting the chase within the ultra-sleazy world of human trafficking, which we secretly hope is just a media creation, but know deep inside that this reprehensible and inhumane phenomenon is a reality, the film is propelled by a sense of urgency that isn't present in most revenge films. Liam Neeson's daughter isn't "Dead", she's "Taken", so his race against the ticking stopwatch tracking her probable fate provides enough tension to diffuse any disappointment in knowing exactly what's going to happen here.

The selling point here is how deftly Liam Neeson hacks his way through a bevy of Albanian baddies. Neeson is untested as an action star, but watching him maneuver his way through the sea of detritus here, we're left hoping that he's got a franchise in him.

The film may not have the intricacies of the expertly crafted Bourne films (although, like every action film made since Bourne appeared on the screen, the fight scenes here owe an obviously rich debt to Matt Damon's antics), but the gritty and realistic path Neeson carves to get to his stolen daughter is sufficient to deliver the promise implied by the fantastic trailer.

You don't have to be a parent to understand and sympathize with Liam's plight here, and there is a morbid but exhilarating sense of release in seeing the evil empire pay for its transgressions. Sometimes morally complex, ambiguous studies of man's desire for revenge are too preachy to be entertaining. Taken doesn't really care if you like Liam Neeson or wonder if he's doing the right thing by flagrantly taking the law into his own hands; the film just wants you to strap yourself in and enjoy the tidings as he hands out beat-downs all over Paris.

This film doesn't want you to think. Like Neeson's character quickly realizes, thinking is often not a luxury present in dire circumstances like these. Action is what counts, and for those who miss the era of the lean, mean 85-minute skull-crack fest, Taken will re-conjure the giddy thrills of watching Dudikoff, Seagal, and Van-Damme chomp through a slew of B-Movie terrorists. Having an Oscar-caliber actor delivering the judo chops only sweetens the pot.

Forget about Oscars, plot points, or coherence. This dude's daughter has been kidnapped, and he's a former government agent trained to make bad guys' lives a living hell. Do you want to see him find his daughter and take down the scum who took her? Of course you do. Even reading this review is over-analyzing it.

The most thrilling movie I've seen in a long time. Neeson is what we would fear if James Bond went to hell and came back for revenge (I doubt big budget Quantum of Solace will top this). I loved Jason Bourne; but where Bourne is confused for half the movie, Neeson is looking down a barrel of a pistol 3/4 of the time. In a three way spy battle, I would put Neeson edging out Bourne, who would be a step ahead of Bond.

Between the jaw-dropping action sequences was the subject matter of international trafficking, which was pretty miserable to watch. Although killing is wrong, death was never more satisfying to watch.