Taken
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation | Release Date: January 30, 2009
7.4
USER SCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 715 Ratings
USER RATING DISTRIBUTION
Positive:
537
Mixed:
109
Negative:
69
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6
MonsieurEamesJan 24, 2013
Could have been a lot better. The first half is really engaging but the movie loses steam going into the second half. The ending could have been more rewarding, too.
4 of 4 users found this helpful40
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6
EssenceOfSugarMar 4, 2012
First of all, the drawbacks. I know I hate to do this, but there was a few things wrong with the film. For one thing, it was slightly predictable because I didn't think this film would end with something bad happening. Everything's good untilFirst of all, the drawbacks. I know I hate to do this, but there was a few things wrong with the film. For one thing, it was slightly predictable because I didn't think this film would end with something bad happening. Everything's good until the ending, it just sort of fizzles out. Next, it would be pretty exaggerated that someone would be able to rescue someone from a human trafficking group in only a few days. The pacing was a bit thin on the ground, and I also think the girls were portrayed as screechy, weepy, able to believe anything anyone says and blab everything to someone they've just met. Now that's over and done with, there's a few good points I'd like to say. It tackled a very important issue, and, even if it were over exaggerated, that does happen in the world, so it was quite brave to tackle this kind of issue. I think the violence was the least of my problems, and it was thrilling to see Liam Neeson do a bit of ****-kicking because he definitely looked suited for the role. I loved the relationship of his daughter and him, which made me hate the step-father and mother more (what an **** hole and a **** Generally it was a entertaining film, it just needs a bit more work to fix the predictable and confusingly paced storyline, although I think the critics have been a little harsh on what I call an OK film.… Expand
2 of 2 users found this helpful20
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5
BKMJan 13, 2013
Liam Neesen makes a convincing action hero with a "particular set of skills" in this wisp on an action film. Things move along at a rapid pace and the outcome is never in doubt which makes for a tidy movie going experience. Still, a littleLiam Neesen makes a convincing action hero with a "particular set of skills" in this wisp on an action film. Things move along at a rapid pace and the outcome is never in doubt which makes for a tidy movie going experience. Still, a little bit of complexity and a touch of emotional depth would have helped to keep this meager revenge fantasy from fading almost instantaneously from memory.… Expand
1 of 1 users found this helpful10
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5
barnet42Oct 15, 2012
It's got all the attributes of a guilty pleasure - excitement, some undeniably enjoyable scenes and the absence of what it needs to be more memorable and more substantial.
1 of 1 users found this helpful10
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5
RayzorMooseNov 16, 2013
Taken doesn't bring much to the table.
The movie is paced well, the story if fine, and the action is lackluster. It mainly is plagued with an extremely simple plot combined with a very predictable outcome. An okay action flick.
1 of 1 users found this helpful10
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5
MovieMasterEddyApr 3, 2016
Liam Neeson makes a surprisingly convincing one-man mean machine in "Taken."

Onetime Langley grunt Bryan Mills (Neeson) has moved to Los Angeles to be near his spoiled 17-year-old daughter Kim (Maggie Grace), now embedded in a world ofLiam Neeson makes a surprisingly convincing one-man mean machine in "Taken."

Onetime Langley grunt Bryan Mills (Neeson) has moved to Los Angeles to be near his spoiled 17-year-old daughter Kim (Maggie Grace), now embedded in a world of luxury since his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) married rich businessman Stuart (Xander Berkeley). When some ex-CIA pals offer him a night’s work bodyguarding a singer (Holly Valance), it’s clear Bryan has lost none of his Jason Bourne-like skills when he saves the diva from an attempted slaying.

Under pressure from Lenore, Bryan reluctantly agrees to let Kim go on a Euro trip with schoolfriend Amanda (Katie Cassidy). But when both girls are kidnapped by evil Albanians within minutes of their arrival, Bryan hops one of Stuart’s private jets to Paris to find her. He reckons he has 96 hours before Kim ends up a drug-addicted lump of white meat.

Besson alum Pierre Morel, who was d.p. on “The Transporter” and previously helmed 2004’s futuristic actioner “District B13,” wisely doesn’t give the viewer any time to ponder the string of unlikely coincidences in the script by Besson and regular scribe Robert Mark Kamen. From the actual kidnapping — breathlessly staged with Kim actually on the phone with dad — to Bryan arriving in Paris and immediately causing a pileup outside the airport, pic has the forward, devil-may-care momentum of a Bond movie on steroids.

With grudging help from former French intelligence op Jean-Claude (Olivier Rabourdin) and an Albanian translator (Goran Kostic), Bryan discovers and then trashes the baddies’ ramshackle brothel prior to tracking down kidnapper Marko (Arben Bajraktaraj) and his gang. He then learns Kim has been sold in a high-class auction arranged by a certain Patrice St. Clair (Gerard Watkins) for — natch! — Arab clients.

Interventionist politics of the movie, which plays like “Rambo in Paris,” hardly bear thinking about, but Neeson growls his way through the functional dialogue as an unstoppable killing machine in impressive, cold-eyed style. For a thesp now in his mid-50s, he handles the niftily edited, bone-crunching action way better than his scenes as a sappy, devoted father. Other thesps simply register as evil gun-fodder or script cutouts (including a wasted Janssen), with only Rabourdin suggesting anything like a real character.

Widescreen package is technically slick at all levels, and ditto the action choreography, in a cartoonish way.… Expand
1 of 1 users found this helpful10
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5
grandpajoe6191Sep 25, 2011
The movie is surprisingly good if you look at decent standards. However if you think harder, you would suspect that the movie's a kinda bit... shallow?
5 of 7 users found this helpful52
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6
akshatmahajanAug 28, 2020
This film was missing kick the crap out of everyone who gets in your way action. Many will say that it was not needed but I think that thing makes this type of movie much better. Liam Neeson's acting was nice, loved it. But there was aThis film was missing kick the crap out of everyone who gets in your way action. Many will say that it was not needed but I think that thing makes this type of movie much better. Liam Neeson's acting was nice, loved it. But there was a problem with the story, it was too simple. The story needed to be more powerful. Also, the character development was also not done nicely. They should have done the character development seeing that the sequels are gonna come. Overall, you will enjoy the film but it's not for hard-core action fans.… Expand
1 of 2 users found this helpful11
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5
JohnBJan 10, 2011
It's a cross between Frantic and the Bourne movies, but by the Transporter Team.
I suppose there's some appeal in seeing kidnapping scumbags get their come-uppence, but there's no real tension or intrigue. He goes to France, he follows theIt's a cross between Frantic and the Bourne movies, but by the Transporter Team.
I suppose there's some appeal in seeing kidnapping scumbags get their come-uppence, but there's no real tension or intrigue. He goes to France, he follows the trail with improbable ease, he kills EVERYONE, often with just a quick flick of the wrist. He gets knocked on the head and captured once...3 minutes later he kills them all too.
Entertaining enough guff, but it's nothing more than a very daft action movie with some nasty scenes and a reasonably respectable lead actor.… Expand
1 of 4 users found this helpful13
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5
ricosalsaFeb 1, 2009
Influenced by the Bourne films, but unlike those, fails to make sense of the way a professional would handle himself in the given situation. Neesons character dives suicidally head-first into problems which would require thinking and Influenced by the Bourne films, but unlike those, fails to make sense of the way a professional would handle himself in the given situation. Neesons character dives suicidally head-first into problems which would require thinking and calculation, and instant gratification follows. You would expect more from such quality actors and writers. (The personal issue at hand can't excuse the total lack of sensible behavior. If that were the case, the movie would negate itself). If you replace Neeson with Steven Seagal, it would accentuate what this movie really is: A mediocre action-flick.… Expand
0 of 1 users found this helpful
6
DQSlotkinsFeb 1, 2009
It's one of those. And a mediocre one at that. The genre wears thin. Maybe 2 or 3 surprises, but if that's all it has to offer beside Liam Neeson then it's not enough for me.
0 of 1 users found this helpful
5
PhilE.Feb 5, 2009
A lot of action, but not much for excitement. Can't hold a candle to any of the "Bourne" movies, although it's shot in that style. Neeson is good, his character is invincible, and he tracks down the bad guys in unbelievable A lot of action, but not much for excitement. Can't hold a candle to any of the "Bourne" movies, although it's shot in that style. Neeson is good, his character is invincible, and he tracks down the bad guys in unbelievable fashion. That is all to easy to be believed. A dismal movie, with plenty of action...… Expand
0 of 1 users found this helpful
4
kgm.Jan 31, 2009
The most shocking thing in this movie is how it
0 of 3 users found this helpful
6
ChadS.Jan 31, 2009
On what was supposed to be a routine detail assignment, Bryan Mills(Liam Neeson), recently emasculated by a bout of birthday present one-upmanship, gets one ball back after he successfully defends a pop diva from her would-be assassin. He On what was supposed to be a routine detail assignment, Bryan Mills(Liam Neeson), recently emasculated by a bout of birthday present one-upmanship, gets one ball back after he successfully defends a pop diva from her would-be assassin. He gets the other ball back when Kim(Maggie Grace) is kidnapped by a sex-trafficking ring, in which this former spy, to his good fortune, gets to reassert himself as the alpha male in his daughter's eyes, should he afford her the opportunity to ride the horse that trumped the karaoke machine. Jokingly referred to as Rambo by a friend, the name not only suits his one-man army stronghold tactics, but the filmic context in which he does battle, as well. There's a war in France, a war against the sex industry, that surreptitously makes reference to the Indochina War, in which France and Vietnam are forever intertwined. As Ted Kotcheff's "First Blood" was a wish-fulfillment movie about saving POWs, "Taken" also serves the same function, since the filmmaker, like the men who helmed the Rambo franchise, puts things into order by means of reductionism. In stark contrast to "Taken", there is Lukas Moodyson's fatalistic worldview of the same topical issue, the sobering "Lilya 4-Ever", where a Polish girl gets sexually exploited with no hope for a familial savior to emancipate her. For all its slick pacing and snappy action; in other words, its entertainment value, there's a distinctly unpleasant air to this whole enterprise, since "Taken" seems to be predicated on the father getting his ego back, in deference to the pain and humiliation of indentured women. His daughter's kidnapping rejuvenates him; his sac is restored to full capacity. Bryan now seems ready to f*** the horse Kim's stepfather rode on. "Taken" is a revenge fantasy against ex-wives who remarry richer, more accomplished men. Kim's mom(read:"the bitch") is punished for letting their daughter go globe-trotting in Europe.… Expand
0 of 1 users found this helpful
5
TylerMFeb 26, 2009
"I'll tear down the Eifle Tower if I have to!" Not as thrilling as the commercial, but still enjoyable. Unintentionally funny, it's entertaining for a forgiving audience. http://www.criticalmass.fcpmainline.com
0 of 1 users found this helpful
5
JamesMMay 11, 2009
I thought this movie was pretty fun to watch. Neeson's character is very inspirational.
0 of 1 users found this helpful
6
DavidHFeb 17, 2009
It's always entertaining to watch scumbags have justice served on them in an abrupt fashion, rather than have them surf through a dysfunctional legal system. Liam Neeson is a good choice for this part and plays it well. Sadly, this It's always entertaining to watch scumbags have justice served on them in an abrupt fashion, rather than have them surf through a dysfunctional legal system. Liam Neeson is a good choice for this part and plays it well. Sadly, this movie starts out strong but dwindles to a shoddy plot finish. It's as though the writers had a great idea to start but ran out of time and scratched out the ending in the wee hours of one morning on a napkin. The low point is when Neeson's somewhat estranged and clueless daughter, after watching her father risk life, limb and everything to get her back, basically just gives him a hug and then goes back to her even more clueless mother and stepfather.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
4
TonyB.Jul 27, 2009
You won't be bored for a minute, but you won't believe a minute of it.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
6
SebHOct 30, 2009
I've always appreciated cringeworthy kitsch so long as it's self-consciously so. Taken is the kind of horribly over-acted, ridiculous, self-indulgent thriller that sort of defines cringeworthy kitsch, particularly Liam I've always appreciated cringeworthy kitsch so long as it's self-consciously so. Taken is the kind of horribly over-acted, ridiculous, self-indulgent thriller that sort of defines cringeworthy kitsch, particularly Liam Neeson's frankly awful script and delivery thereof. We all know he's a talented actor, so why did he stoop to this low? Easy money? That said I love the insipidness of the plot, and the fact that it knows that it's awful. The dramatic tone change, however, makes me think that the overall mood of this one is more than a little confused - the impending doom hangs over the considerably lighter first half hour, but was it really necessary to beat the life out of it with the dispassionate performances? The characters are cartoony and unbelievable. As a b-movie, it suffices as a nice little kitschy distraction, but sometimes I wondered how serious it was really trying to be, and that's what stagnated it. Not a disaster, but pretty damn average and confused with lots of cliché heaped atop the lowest-common-denominator nature of its inception.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
6
ImanMAug 6, 2009
He is like Max Payne face to face with Mafia just with one pistol in the end his ex-wife said just thank you.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
4
ChadAJan 21, 2010
A typical basic action movie Basic plot(predictable) and basic scenes(car chases, gun fights) The action scenes are too weak and boring This film is just typical and will suit the typical person and the typical action junkie Too bad my A typical basic action movie Basic plot(predictable) and basic scenes(car chases, gun fights) The action scenes are too weak and boring This film is just typical and will suit the typical person and the typical action junkie Too bad my tastes are too high… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
6
RobbyZ.Apr 6, 2010
A unique plot without realism.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
4
JakekFeb 17, 2009
Slick production. Pretty to look at. Otherwise, illogical plot and action, terrible script [what happened to Neeson's team of pros], unbearable female lead [Maggie Grace], and cardboard actors and actresses. Final analysis: stupid movie.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
5
syzygyFeb 8, 2009
This is a tired formula but with a few high points towards the middle when Liam Neeson is working his instincts and his old CIA network to recover his daughter. Once he gets through the core baddies and is forced to literally run to catch up This is a tired formula but with a few high points towards the middle when Liam Neeson is working his instincts and his old CIA network to recover his daughter. Once he gets through the core baddies and is forced to literally run to catch up to his kid, the audience will more tired than him and desperate for mercifully quick ending.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
6
JayHMar 28, 2009
A fast paced thriller that starts out excellent, but as it develops it becomes and too far fetched. It seems there is nothing Liam Neeson's character can't do! His cleverness is unconvincing. Exciting but shallow.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
4
JacobMar 20, 2015
Taken shows Liam Nesson as a bad-ass, intelligent killing machine. While seeing Liam Nesson use his super skills to track down his daughter while killing lots of people may be enough to dazzle some it wasn’t enough for me. Even with theTaken shows Liam Nesson as a bad-ass, intelligent killing machine. While seeing Liam Nesson use his super skills to track down his daughter while killing lots of people may be enough to dazzle some it wasn’t enough for me. Even with the action flowing along with the way it did, there were wasn’t enough reason for me to care. The characters are never fleshed out and the fact that this conflict was started due to the generic father daughter argument cliché we’ve seen a million times, although this time as opposed to films like The Little Mermaid he’s actually right, along with the dumb blonde cliché, which what do you think is going to happen. The score is nothing memorable and its hard to enjoy the action due to the rapid cuts in editing and shaky cam which makes it hard for any sort of spatial continuity to be established so I never know whose fighting what. Action movies can be fun but due to failures in story, characters, and filming action scenes I didn’t care. Liam Nesson being smart and killing people can only do so much.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
TyranianApr 14, 2019
Pretty entertaining Neeson action film that's quite well done though thinly plotted.
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
beingryanjudeSep 2, 2014
Each year, we are unfortunately gifted with tired and overdone action films with no real purpose or entertainment. Taken rises above those others--partly due from a solid plot-line and our charismatic lead, Liam Neeson.
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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4
ScorpionMay 28, 2013
The initial idea was good, a father who does everything to save her daughter, but in practice the film becomes more of a blogbuster summer with cliches mostruosos the Bourne trilogy, and an excess of unnecessary violence.
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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5
gracjanskiMar 28, 2021
The introduction is good and the first part of the hunt for the kidnapper is also interesting, because it is intelligent. But later on the movie becomes unrealistic, sort of "one man vs. everyone". Some of the action scenes are realistic andThe introduction is good and the first part of the hunt for the kidnapper is also interesting, because it is intelligent. But later on the movie becomes unrealistic, sort of "one man vs. everyone". Some of the action scenes are realistic and therefore great, but there are many action scenes, that are ridiculously unrealistic. In addition some action scenes are too fast edited and the shaking effects are also not helping to understand whats going on.
The only character that is a little bit interesting it the protagonist, but on the other side he behave so stupidly in his family matters.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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5
FranzHcriticJul 10, 2015
Typical Liam Neeson action thriller, though not without suspense. But it lacks much character development and it's dramatic points are perhaps stunted. It's not without merit, the beginning started off with an interesting premise, but as theTypical Liam Neeson action thriller, though not without suspense. But it lacks much character development and it's dramatic points are perhaps stunted. It's not without merit, the beginning started off with an interesting premise, but as the film progressed, it became less and less interesting. It just isn't something to be in awe about. I don't expect much from it, and I wasn't disappointed.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
lukechristianscMar 20, 2015
The way screenwriter Luc Besson writes scripts for poor action films is at a fifty-fifty, he does have talent but sometimes he sucks. We know he loves the action genre way too much, he loves doing revenge films a lot also having heroineThe way screenwriter Luc Besson writes scripts for poor action films is at a fifty-fifty, he does have talent but sometimes he sucks. We know he loves the action genre way too much, he loves doing revenge films a lot also having heroine female characters. But in Taken things get interesting! Liam Neeson plays a bad ass dad, who try to save his daughter from the Russia's prosecution. We all know that Maggie Grace can't act basically she's like Megan Fox. Grade B-… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
Meth-dudeAug 7, 2018
As unbelievable and predictable as the movie is, it's still a rather entertaining action flick. The acting was fine, the action sequences weren't too badly filmed and the ending, although predictable and cliché, is still nice to watch. It'sAs unbelievable and predictable as the movie is, it's still a rather entertaining action flick. The acting was fine, the action sequences weren't too badly filmed and the ending, although predictable and cliché, is still nice to watch. It's not a particularly good action film, but it's not too bad either. It sits somewhere in the middle.… Expand
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6
diogomendesJan 16, 2015
Ok, so how do I start this? Uh, I thought "Taken" was good... but after a much needed re-watch, I can pretty much say to you (people who are reading this review) that Taken is just another mediocre entry in Liam Neeson's track record. Ok,Ok, so how do I start this? Uh, I thought "Taken" was good... but after a much needed re-watch, I can pretty much say to you (people who are reading this review) that Taken is just another mediocre entry in Liam Neeson's track record. Ok, there you go, I said it. I really like him but saying that one actor makes a film enjoyable is just laughably inane. He's good in this movie but everything else is questionable at best.

Seventeen year-old Kim is the pride and joy of her father Bryan Mills. Bryan is a retired agent who left the Central Intelligence Agency to be near Kim in California. Kim lives with her mother Lenore and her wealthy stepfather Stuart. Kim manages to convince her reluctant father to allow her to travel to Paris with her friend Amanda. When the girls arrive in Paris they share a cab with a stranger named Peter, and Amanda lets it slip that they are alone in Paris. Using this information an Albanian gang of human traffickers kidnaps the girls. Kim barely has time to call her father and give him information. Her father gets to speak briefly to one of the kidnappers and he promises to kill the kidnappers if they do not let his daughter go free. The kidnapper wishes him "good luck," so Bryan Mills travels to Paris to search for his daughter and her friend.

The movie's main problem couldn't possibly be the action. The fights, which mostly is people shooting at each other, are addictive and imposingly choreographed. Liam Neeson kicks so much ass in this film, especially in the scene where Bryan finds the guys who kidnapp his little girl. The tension between them rises when he says to Marko: "I told you I would find you", and he just friggin' starts killing thugs with his bare hands, like he picks a gun, kills a guy and 1 second later he kills 3 of them. It's really THAT entertaining. The problem with the movie is that the story --although captivating-- is completely illogical and mindless, and its pacing is unnecessarily swift. Not just that but Pierre Morel's directing is simply not that good. From the quick cuts and questionable shots, to the horrible cinematography is just plain middling.

*Sighs*

So, Final Score to Taken: 6/10 (If I'm being generous). This is definitely nowhere near a bad movie. Liam Neeson rules it for the most part, and some chunks of it are pretty enjoyable, but "Taken" ultimately suffers from its problematic pace and mediocre direction. If this one wasn't that good, imagine what the unnecessary sequel of the unnecessary sequel could be. Be afraid, be very afraid...… Expand
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6
juliankennedy23Oct 26, 2014
Taken: 6 out of 10: Taken comes this close to being great. It had an admittedly rocky start with Liam Neeson is trying to reconnect with his virginal 17 year-old teenage daughter in a way that seems just on this side of creepy. (Dude get yourTaken: 6 out of 10: Taken comes this close to being great. It had an admittedly rocky start with Liam Neeson is trying to reconnect with his virginal 17 year-old teenage daughter in a way that seems just on this side of creepy. (Dude get your own girlfriend... really) Speaking of which; swarthy bad guys, who clearly have never heard of Nancy Grace, are kidnapping Rich American Girls and making them drugged out street walkers or selling them for millions to Arab Sheiks based on whether they are virgins or not? So ex-CIA estranged father Liam Neeson has 96 hours to find his daughter before she is “gone forever” deflowered and then burkaized apparently. “A Fate Worse than Death” you can almost hear the characters thinking.

It’s as if Charles Bronson was guest starring in an Ilsa the Wicked Warden film located in George C Scott’s Hardcore and the entire enterprise was PG-13. And yet the film still works two thirds through. Liam Neeson is more than fine. He is kicking ass on all cylinders. It’s the bad guys that drop the ball.

First a rich French guy starts quoting the Godfather. “It’s not personal it’s business” For starters the quote isn’t even in context. He might as well have told the gun toting Liam Neeson “may the force be with you” for all the sense it makes. Second of all you can’t quote the Godfather without referencing the fact that you are quoting it in the first place. Any screenwriter who does that should be sleeping with the fishes.

The second slap to the head is an Arab Sheik character that looked like he stepped out of a 1940’s Bugs Bunny cartoon. Honestly I don’t know where to begin on this silly stereotype. Why is he the film? Why does he have a knife to the white virgin’s throat? Who would Oscar Schindler shoot???? The last point seems important since the Arab is basically a Juden in a dress. Same large noses, same aversion to pork, same living in ghettos in Europe (Or/and having all the money), same secret organizations paying off French politicians, same affinity to despoiling white Aryan virgins... The more things change the more the stay the same I guess. (They didn’t have the Arab cook and eat a baby. I guess they are holding that back for the sequel) Overt French xenophobia aside, Taken is a fun ride for most of the trip. (The dinner with his French policeman friend and Frenchman's wife was a particular highlight) And as I did mention Liam Neeson kicks ass.… Expand
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5
vikesh2206Nov 11, 2014
Despite being an implausible brainless ride throughout, Taken is a slightly above par action thriller made better from a solid performance by Liam Neeson.
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5
MrMovieBuffMay 31, 2016
A brutal security guard's daughter gets kidnapped while on a trip to Paris in 'Taken', the intense action thriller starring Liam Neeson as Bryan Mills, a retired CIA field operative, who is reluctant when his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) plansA brutal security guard's daughter gets kidnapped while on a trip to Paris in 'Taken', the intense action thriller starring Liam Neeson as Bryan Mills, a retired CIA field operative, who is reluctant when his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) plans on going to France with just her best friend. Kim is only 17 years old, and the idea of a teenager going abroad unsupervised can be troubling for a parent.

Bryan is convinced after a while, however, and he decides to let her go to France. He and his ex-wife, Lennie (Famke Janssen) seem to have a difference in opinion, coming from a CIA background, he is overprotective for his daughter, but Lennie insists that Kim should be independent and make her own decisions. Sometimes, as a parent, you have to learn to let go.

One day, at the hotel, Kim does get kidnapped while calling her father, along with her friend by a group of violent sex traffickers. Bryan does what he can to travel to France, and track down the thugs who kidnapped both her and her friend. He ends up talking to one of the thugs via the phone, and tries to recognize the voice.

As he arrives in France, as you would expect from this movie to deliver, there is a lot of scenes where Neeson's character is killing people left, right and center. I can say that it doesn't fail to entertain as it does deliver its promise to show us this one character just going around murdering people he assumed was involved in the kidnapping of his daughter. The violence is also brutal, but at times, unfocused. The camerawork seems to lack showing a further emphasis of the action, and at times, it can make anyone a little dizzy amidst all the drama going on.

Overall, this is a dark film, but at times, it feels ineffective, the characters here seem to lack some sort of empathy, and it gets to the point where you wind up just not caring for anyone. No matter how much the tension rises, the interest in me seems to deteriorate over time. The movie's plot never loses focus, but the action and characters seem to wear off as the run time goes on.

At the end of the day, it's an okay action movie...but there are better alternatives out there...even if it is the classic 'Die Hard' (1988).… Expand
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4
MovieManiac83Apr 22, 2015
The risible thriller Taken has a message for overprotective fathers everywhere: Don't let your teenage daughter go overseas. She's almost certain to be abducted by Albanian sex traffickers. After reluctantly agreeing to allow his spoiledThe risible thriller Taken has a message for overprotective fathers everywhere: Don't let your teenage daughter go overseas. She's almost certain to be abducted by Albanian sex traffickers. After reluctantly agreeing to allow his spoiled 17-year-old (Maggie Grace) to spend the summer in Paris with a friend, ex-spy and estranged single father Liam Neeson braces himself for the inevitable the moment she passes through airport security. (He even takes a photo for posterity, knowing it could be the last time he ever sees her.) Back at his apartment, he waits and waits and waits for her to call. When she finally does, in distress over three men invading her Paris flat, Neeson is right there with a briefcase full of high-tech recording equipment, giving her instructions. Apparently, he's been keeping the case around as his personal "Break Glass In Case Of Emergency Involving Albanian Sex Traffickers" safeguard.

Neeson's readiness for worst-case scenarios—and screenwriters Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen's proficiency in queuing them up—fuels the high-octane lunacy of Taken, which is a little like Paul Schrader's Hardcore retooled as a Steven Seagal vehicle. Having a thespian of Neeson's caliber chopping down burly henchmen with his bare hands creates a pleasant cognitive dissonance for a while, but the film is unworthy of him. Director Pierre Morel also collaborated with Besson on the far more entertaining District B13, but Taken's subject matter is too serious for an escapist chop-socky movie, and the sleazy, exploitative tone undercuts the thrills. Where Hardcore muddied the waters by questioning how far George C. Scott would take his odyssey into the porn underworld, and at what cost to his soul—Taken never doubts Neeson's righteousness, even when he's torturing a bad guy with electrical wire or clipping a perfectly innocent woman in the arm just to get information. He's a thug, and though it takes some time to see past the sensitive Neeson of Schindler's List or Husbands And Wives, he slips all too easily into the role.… Expand
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4
moviemayhemApr 28, 2015
The risible thriller Taken has a message for overprotective fathers everywhere: Don't let your teenage daughter go overseas. She's almost certain to be abducted by Albanian sex traffickers. After reluctantly agreeing to allow his spoiledThe risible thriller Taken has a message for overprotective fathers everywhere: Don't let your teenage daughter go overseas. She's almost certain to be abducted by Albanian sex traffickers. After reluctantly agreeing to allow his spoiled 17-year-old (Maggie Grace) to spend the summer in Paris with a friend, ex-spy and estranged single father Liam Neeson braces himself for the inevitable the moment she passes through airport security. (He even takes a photo for posterity, knowing it could be the last time he ever sees her.) Back at his apartment, he waits and waits and waits for her to call. When she finally does, in distress over three men invading her Paris flat, Neeson is right there with a briefcase full of high-tech recording equipment, giving her instructions. Apparently, he's been keeping the case around as his personal "Break Glass In Case Of Emergency Involving Albanian Sex Traffickers" safeguard.

Neeson's readiness for worst-case scenarios—and screenwriters Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen's proficiency in queuing them up—fuels the high-octane lunacy of Taken, which is a little like Paul Schrader's Hardcore retooled as a Steven Seagal vehicle. Having a thespian of Neeson's caliber chopping down burly henchmen with his bare hands creates a pleasant cognitive dissonance for a while, but the film is unworthy of him. Director Pierre Morel also collaborated with Besson on the far more entertaining District B13, but Taken's subject matter is too serious for an escapist chop-socky movie, and the sleazy, exploitative tone undercuts the thrills. Where Hardcore muddied the waters by questioning how far George C. Scott would take his odyssey into the porn underworld, and at what cost to his soul—Taken never doubts Neeson's righteousness, even when he's torturing a bad guy with electrical wire or clipping a perfectly innocent woman in the arm just to get information. He's a thug, and though it takes some time to see past the sensitive Neeson of Schindler's List or Husbands And Wives, he slips all too easily into the role.… Expand
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4
ReelViews94Mar 23, 2016
The risible thriller Taken has a message for overprotective fathers everywhere: Don't let your teenage daughter go overseas. She's almost certain to be abducted by Albanian sex traffickers. After reluctantly agreeing to allow his spoiledThe risible thriller Taken has a message for overprotective fathers everywhere: Don't let your teenage daughter go overseas. She's almost certain to be abducted by Albanian sex traffickers. After reluctantly agreeing to allow his spoiled 17-year-old (Maggie Grace) to spend the summer in Paris with a friend, ex-spy and estranged single father Liam Neeson braces himself for the inevitable the moment she passes through airport security. (He even takes a photo for posterity, knowing it could be the last time he ever sees her.) Back at his apartment, he waits and waits and waits for her to call. When she finally does, in distress over three men invading her Paris flat, Neeson is right there with a briefcase full of high-tech recording equipment, giving her instructions. Apparently, he's been keeping the case around as his personal "Break Glass In Case Of Emergency Involving Albanian Sex Traffickers" safeguard.

Neeson's readiness for worst-case scenarios—and screenwriters Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen's proficiency in queuing them up—fuels the high-octane lunacy of Taken, which is a little like Paul Schrader's Hardcore retooled as a Steven Seagal vehicle. Having a thespian of Neeson's caliber chopping down burly henchmen with his bare hands creates a pleasant cognitive dissonance for a while, but the film is unworthy of him. Director Pierre Morel also collaborated with Besson on the far more entertaining District B13, but Taken's subject matter is too serious for an escapist chop-socky movie, and the sleazy, exploitative tone undercuts the thrills. Where Hardcore muddied the waters by questioning how far George C. Scott would take his odyssey into the porn underworld, and at what cost to his soul—Taken never doubts Neeson's righteousness, even when he's torturing a bad guy with electrical wire or clipping a perfectly innocent woman in the arm just to get information. He's a thug, and though it takes some time to see past the sensitive Neeson of Schindler's List or Husbands And Wives, he slips all too easily into the role.… Expand
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6
FilmClubMar 27, 2016
Liam Neeson makes a surprisingly convincing one-man mean machine in "Taken."

Onetime Langley grunt Bryan Mills (Neeson) has moved to Los Angeles to be near his spoiled 17-year-old daughter Kim (Maggie Grace), now embedded in a world ofLiam Neeson makes a surprisingly convincing one-man mean machine in "Taken."

Onetime Langley grunt Bryan Mills (Neeson) has moved to Los Angeles to be near his spoiled 17-year-old daughter Kim (Maggie Grace), now embedded in a world of luxury since his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) married rich businessman Stuart (Xander Berkeley). When some ex-CIA pals offer him a night’s work bodyguarding a singer (Holly Valance), it’s clear Bryan has lost none of his Jason Bourne-like skills when he saves the diva from an attempted slaying.

Under pressure from Lenore, Bryan reluctantly agrees to let Kim go on a Euro trip with schoolfriend Amanda (Katie Cassidy). But when both girls are kidnapped by evil Albanians within minutes of their arrival, Bryan hops one of Stuart’s private jets to Paris to find her. He reckons he has 96 hours before Kim ends up a drug-addicted lump of white meat.

Besson alum Pierre Morel, who was d.p. on “The Transporter” and previously helmed 2004’s futuristic actioner “District B13,” wisely doesn’t give the viewer any time to ponder the string of unlikely coincidences in the script by Besson and regular scribe Robert Mark Kamen. From the actual kidnapping — breathlessly staged with Kim actually on the phone with dad — to Bryan arriving in Paris and immediately causing a pileup outside the airport, pic has the forward, devil-may-care momentum of a Bond movie on steroids.

With grudging help from former French intelligence op Jean-Claude (Olivier Rabourdin) and an Albanian translator (Goran Kostic), Bryan discovers and then trashes the baddies’ ramshackle brothel prior to tracking down kidnapper Marko (Arben Bajraktaraj) and his gang. He then learns Kim has been sold in a high-class auction arranged by a certain Patrice St. Clair (Gerard Watkins) for — natch! — Arab clients.

Interventionist politics of the movie, which plays like “Rambo in Paris,” hardly bear thinking about, but Neeson growls his way through the functional dialogue as an unstoppable killing machine in impressive, cold-eyed style. For a thesp now in his mid-50s, he handles the niftily edited, bone-crunching action way better than his scenes as a sappy, devoted father. Other thesps simply register as evil gun-fodder or script cutouts (including a wasted Janssen), with only Rabourdin suggesting anything like a real character.

Widescreen package is technically slick at all levels, and ditto the action choreography, in a cartoonish way.… Expand
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6
geewahAug 9, 2021
Neeson does his best in this action flick, but quite lift it above being a run of mill, "man on a mission" fare.
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6
JJ2FAS4UAug 22, 2022
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6
HellHoleHorrorFeb 15, 2022
It looked okay but I didn't like the orange/cyan tinge to most of the movie. Immersive and well placed sound design, almost perfect! I think I detected some dodgy dubbing. This is shocking. It reminded me of Hostel (2005) but instead ofIt looked okay but I didn't like the orange/cyan tinge to most of the movie. Immersive and well placed sound design, almost perfect! I think I detected some dodgy dubbing. This is shocking. It reminded me of Hostel (2005) but instead of intense gore there was a forced into prostitution theme. There were moments of utter silliness where the story was boring and other moments where the story was stupid. It did ramp up to full on excitement and shock. Shocking with one amazing action scene but overall flawed too much to fully enjoy.… Expand
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5
royalguy07Aug 12, 2022
The famous line is famous and well deservedly. The action is a little too generic and way under the level I was expecting. The messaging is wild, all foreigners are bad??
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