Taken Review

Published by Jeff Leins on January 29, 2009

In Taken, Liam Neeson is a one-man wrecking machine of pure, amped-up action.  Within the span of 94 minutes, the 56-year-old actor proves he belongs in the discussion of solid Hollywood heroes, kicking ass with the best of Bourne and at times better than the latest Bond.  Bare knuckle brawls bleed into automatic weapon shoot-outs and high speed car chases.  A rarely seen off-road escape is only one of multiple slick pedal-to-the-medal sequences reminiscent of the amazing race in Ronin.

At first, Neeson’s Bryan Mills is a passive character full of father-knows-best advice and pitiful pleas for his daughter Kim’s affection (Maggie Grace).  He takes the verbal abuse from his venomous ex-wife (Famke Janssen) and looks dejected when he sees what Kim’s wealthy stepfather has to offer.  But underneath his meek exterior, Mills is a trained fighting machine, who recently retired from a traveling spy job with the CIA to be closer to his daughter.  A contract security gig at a pop concert shows his killer instincts are still intact.

When Kim and her friend beg for a trip to Paris, Mills is reluctant to allow it, but he’s slowly whittled down by his spoiled family and, eager to mend fences, he gives in.  Before Kim departs, Mills sets up strict conditions for her safety, including frequent phone calls with routine updates.  It’s on one of these calls that Kim screams in terror as Albanian kidnappers break in and snatch the teenagers for their underground sex trade.  This sets in motion a ticking timetable and the latent training of a determined father bent on not just rescue, but revenge.

From this point on, Mills is a man on fire.  A ruthless, relentless operative capable of outsmarting French officials or dispatching a bevy of baddies.  He furiously hunts down leads, extracts information by whatever means necessary, and dives into another sticky situation.  There isn’t time to see the sights, Paris is a blur in the background of the non-stop action barreling right to the very end.

To be fair, the movie contains plot holes and unrealistic action sequences, but nothing so unbelievable or cartoonish that it puts a damper on your enjoyment.  Unlike screenwriter Luc Besson’s other run-and-guns (Transporter 1-3), Bryan Mills doesn’t perform any vehicular acrobatics or superhuman stunts.

Meanwhile, director Pierre Morel plays fast and loose with the language barrier, scattering subtitles here and there, but allowing a surprising amount of English for a movie based in Paris.

But pausing to ponder the flaws isn’t really an option as the plot powers quickly through this simple, yet solid guy movie.  It may be mindless action, but it’s energetic and entertaining.  I recommend you take in Taken.

4 out of 5.