Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Movie Review ... Taken 2

 

taken-2-movie-poster-2012Directed by the aptly named Olivier Megaton, ‘Taken 2’ provides a ton of explosive action.  This shouldn’t be any surprise to those knowing his work. Backed by producer Luc Besson – himself no stranger to huge films including ‘The Fifth Element’ – this sequel is just as spectacular as one hopes.  Its plot may feel familiar but it does the job in providing a roller-coaster ride towards an outlandish finale.

Retired intelligence agent Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) is a man never to be messed with which his latest adversaries discover to their peril.  Kidnapping his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) and daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) during a holiday in Istanbul, Bryan becomes hell-bent in seeking vengeance. With his knowledge and skills his most potent weapons, he takes aim at those standing in his way.

‘Taken 2’ finds everyone on auto-pilot.  Exerting the least amount of effort for the maximum amount of audience dollars this is very much a ‘file it and forget it’ adventure.  The action sequences are amazing with the Istanbul location used effectively.  It’s more the generic story which is told without much flair.  All go through their paces with the requisite amount of posturing and worried scowls no substitute for genuine characterisation.

Despite this lack of dazzle the script has few interesting things to say about the nature of vengeance.  How the consequences of Mills’ actions from the previous movie are played out is quite interesting as is his resourcefulness.  These elements make viewing passable during the mundane moments with the acting generally not amounting to much. 

Offering exactly what you’d expect ‘Taken 2’ is a silly yarn quickly fading from memory.  Neeson and Besson used to stand for high quality productions and hopefully they will again by avoiding this type of basic vanilla film-making slowly deflating their once glowing reputations.

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Movie Review Rating:  5 / 10

Movie Review by Patrick Moore

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