Taken - Review
Oh Liam, you could have gotten your daughter back fast if you would have just used the Jedi Mind Trick.
Ok no, but seriously, I absolutely loved Taken. It is definitely a very balls-to-the-wall action movie, where the star has the ability to repel (via special "Protagonist Magnets") 99% of bullets, with of course the 1% of obligatory "Oh I got shot to prove I'm not immortal" scene.
I think this movie's strongest aspect is the flow. The movie maintains a very speedy pace throughout the 90 minutes you're in your seat. Everything has a simple explanation, and Liam's character pretty much has free roam in Paris due to his time doing shady government work for the CIA. Yet, at no point did I sit there and say, "Where are the police in all this?" because they just didn't spend enough time in the aftermath of anything to really show the cleanup.
And let me be sure to say, there was plenty for the Paris Police to clean up after Neeson showed up. Bryan Mills (Neeson's character) pretty much spends the entirety of movie killing absolutely everyone involved in the kidnapping of his daughter, from the bottom up.
I mentioned it in my review of Escape From City 17 that I enjoy the shaky cam style of filming, and while this movie spends a lot of time with established shots, all the action sequences are shot in the "shaky-cam" style and I thought it fit well. I spent much of my time comparing the action sequences to that of the Bourne Trilogy, except Bryan Mills was a lot more in favor of ending lives, rather than just beating people up.
Neeson's performance is stellar, and his deadpan line delivery is excellent for the hell-bent-retired-CIA-agent he plays. From the get-go you sympathize with his desire to spend more time with his daughter, and despise the materialistic mother who left him for Daddy Warbucks (whom we never really see develop as a character).
In fact, just about every character besides Neeson, his wife, daughter (Maggie Grace - formerly LOST regular Shannon Rutherford), and shady French Police Buddy, we never really see any character development from anyone. No one seems to live long enough to develop, and those who do live, are just kind of pushed aside to make room for more death and mayhem. Don't get me wrong, I didn't mind all the explosions and shoot outs, but after the first 15 minutes it seems, we totally lose touch with Neeson's friends with whom he aided in a job early on in the film. It seems like they could have had a bigger role in the movie, and they just got cut off a bit too soon.
All in all, I absolutely loved Taken. If you're looking for something with a lot of action this new year, Taken is definitely the movie to see right now. If you're looking for a deep movie with a lot of character devlopment and lengthy winding plot, then you're going to come out of this movie a little disappointed. Leave the thinking cap at home at home for this movie, and get ready for the adrenaline filled kill frenzy that is Taken.
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