Amazon Holiday

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Taken

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: When a retired spy's daughter gets kidnapped, he (Liam Neeson) will stop at nothing to get her back before she is sold into prostitution.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Xander Berkeley, Katie Cassidy, Nicholas Giraud, Olivier Rabourdin,

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: PhotobucketProceed with Caution. Though it's billed as a thriller, this film fits more cleanly into the superhero genre. Despite the fact that Liam Neeson doesn't wear a cape or a mask, or have any notable superpowers, his skills at tracking and apprehending bad guys are definitely superhuman. And while the film is entertaining throughout, it is missing the one thing that makes and breaks a good superhero movie: a worthy adversary.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Human trafficking, now there's a funny topic!

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Some saps I know might've gotten teary-eyed during the epilogue. But I can't vouch for them.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: It's been doing awesome at the box office (on track to cross $100 million), and I think that's more than the studio behind this small January release ever expected.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Liam Neeson is intense and makes you feel his urgency from the beginning to the end. Maggie Grace does a great job of portraying that youthful high school energy, and I probably shouldn't be impressed by this, but she's a very good screamer.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: There are a lot of artful shots, but I'm a firm believer that action needs to be shown in wider shots so you can follow what's going on.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: Action packed and intense because the stakes are high and the clock is ticking, but this movie could have gotten that elusive green light from me, if only Neeson had been put into a few more impossible-to-get-out-of situations. As it is now, you feel like he's always two steps ahead of everyone, and no one could possibly stop him.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/taken/28725/trailers

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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've seen this film three times. Great action film.

Check out my review if you get a chance.

And its not that Neeson has superpowers, its the fact that his opponents are so unskilled it looks like he has superpowers.

Reel Whore said...

I had a blast watching Taken. A worthy adversary would've been a nice addition, but not having one didn't bother me. I equated Neeson's character to Darkman in my review. At least he had Larry Drake.

"I'm a firm believer that action needs to be shown in wider shots so you can follow what's going on."

Amen! The popularity of the action blur is very tiresome.

BTW, Love your format!

Eddie Garcia said...

Haven't had the chance to see this one yet, but I heard it was a good one. I am looking forward to visiting your site often to get all the updates. Thanks for the posts!

Eddie Garcia
eddiegarcia08@gmail.com

Monique said...

Thanks for your comments, you guys! Look, the bottom line is that if you like this genre, you should see this film, because it's definitely not a bore. But I couldn't give it a green light because, while it's great compared to the other movies that are out right now, I don't think it's one of the best movies in its genre... But it is fun, and you should see it, if you like action, thriller, or human trafficking.

Monique

Kenny Wyland said...

I finally got to see Taken and loved it, but I always love the highly-trained-operative movies so it's no surprise.

I think it's got a little more than others in the genre though because Liam Neeson is such an incredible actor. It's got plenty of those joint-snapping moments which make you wince, but it also has those moments were Neeson brings his full presence to the screen and they are chilling. Loved it!