Taken 2

Reviews from the Dark Side presents
Taken 2
Released 10/3/12, now in theaters

Liam Neeson returns as retired spy, Bryan Mills, in Taken 2.  Directed this time around by Olivier Megaton, the film is, of course, the sequel to 2008’s Taken.  Luc Besson also returns as producer. While the first film has generated a cult following, will the sequel live up to the hype?

A year after the events of the first film, Bryan Mills has become closer to his daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace) and ex-wife, Lenore (Famke Janssen).  Lenore’s second marriage is on life support and Kim is eager to re-connect her parents.  When Kim and Lenore surprise Bryan in Istanbul while he’s on a “business” trip,  they seem on the verge of becoming a family again.  But there’s trouble afoot.  Crimelord, Murad Hoxha (Rade Serbedzija), wants Bryan to suffer for the death of his son.  Hoxha’s son is part of the group that kidnapped Bryan’s daughter in the first film.  The patriarch is on a mission of vengeance not only for himself, but for the families of all the men Bryan killed a year earlier (and that list is quite extensive).  Despite Bryan’s best efforts, Hoxha’s minions capture Lenore and almost acquire Kim.  Now, it’s up to Bryan to do what he does best to rescue Lenore and put an end Hoxha for good.

While watching Taken 2, I couldn’t help but think “This is entertaining enough, but didn’t we cover all this ground in the first movie, and wasn’t it done better the first time?”  I felt the same thing watching The Hangover 2. Seeing so many rehashed situations wasn’t that thrilling on the second go around.  Neeson is fine as his quietly tough self, but there is little more to get excited about.  One thing I did think was unintentionally funny was Bryan providing complex instructions to his family that only another spy could follow and both Lenore and Kim understood them perfectly.  Sitting in the audience I was confused.  It’s turn left where?  Where is East?  Hop, skip, and jump to what?  Maybe it was just me, but those scenes just struck me a little funny.  The villains do not nearly give the aura of danger they did in the first Taken.  Hoxha always appears old and tired.  In fact, most of the time you see him, he’s slumped in a chair!  Not a very striking figure of an Eastern European crime boss is it?  Some of the fight scenes have some muddy camera work.  You’re never quite sure how some of bad guys are killed.  Suddenly, Bryan gets close to them and they’re dead.  Maybe I blinked and missed something. 

Aside from Neeson, there isn’t a great reason to watch Taken 2.  He’s a different kind of action star.  He’s a bear of a man who doesn’t do quips, but has “the Look.”  You know the one.  The quietly intense “I’m going to snap your head around 360 degrees, and, there isn’t a thing you can do about it!”  That quiet toughness could have worked for Batman/Bruce Wayne if Neeson was maybe 10 years younger.  But, alas, we’ll never know unless a Dark Knight Returns film is in the works.  Neeson in that role?  That’s something I’d pay to see.  It would be a big step up from the Taken 2 plot.  Here’s hoping there’s no Taken 3.

The Dark Lord of the Sith says:

*** stars (for Neeson alone)

Ratings Legend
Zero *= Don't waste your time. Pure dreck! Dreck is too good for this! Blind me please!
1 *= Fuggedaboutit!
2 *= Average, Mediocre, Nothing Special
3 *= Good viewing. Much better than a poke in the eye.
4 *= Great. Could possibly foot the price of a non-Matinee.
5 *= Pure eye candy. Hall of Fame material here.