Taken DVD
Liam Neeson stars as CIA operative Bryon Mills who takes early retirement so he can spend more time with his daughter but she gets kidnapped while on a Paris vacation.
Film making 18/25
Cinematography 18/25
Audio 18/25
Bonus Features 10/25
Total 64/100
Bryon Mills has a daughter living with his ex-wife because of his work at the CIA but he wants to at least make up for lost time and has retired. Bryon only wants to make things easier for him to get back into her life as he has spent so many years away due to his work.
Bryon takes a small job with some friends who are working a side job protecting a pop singer and he really shows his stuff when a stalker tries to kill her. In appreciation for saving her the singer gives Bryon her personal trainer’s number because Bryon told her his daughter wanted to be a singer.
Bryon tries to tell his daughter about the chance for her to get her foot in the door in the music business but is overshadowed by the ex wife and her husband as well as the daughters dream trip. His daughter Kim wants to go to Paris and stay with her friend but they do not tell Bryon they actually want to follow U2 around Europe.
Bryon agrees to the trip but reluctantly as he knows the ways of the world and has seen what can happen in many parts of the countries she wants to visit overseas. He calls her when she gets in after she forgets to call him and they start to talk only to be interrupted by Kim watching her friend being kidnapped from an adjoining room.
Bryon tells his daughter to hide under the bed and yell out anything about the kidnappers she can and also tells her she will be taken. He starts a Paris wide manhunt to find his daughter who has been kidnapped because she is young, beautiful and a virgin which will bring top dollar in the black market.
Bryon uses his contacts in the CIA to find who is likely to have done this and ends up rescuing his daughter right out from under the Sheik who bought her. Because she was a virgin she was not used as a drugged up sex slave but was sold for a lot of money to those willing to pay for it.
Bryon takes on several world renowned slave traders using his skill and expertise learned through being a CIA agent and doesn’t stop till she is safe. The story ends with Bryon and Kim going to the home of the singer and finding out if she can make it as a pop star.
Taken is a great action adventure and Liam Neeson does a great job as the focused and hard core agent out to save his daughter. The film does the expected with the action but Liam did a great job as the agent who knows a lot and uses his skill and motivation to get his daughter back.
The film did not receive very good ratings but I thought it was well worth watching and returning for some fast paced action entertainment. This is definitely a movie I will be keeping and watching on occasion as it is just the sort of thriller that makes a great film.
While the action is great the film does not delve much into anything but the action and drama of a man with certain skill sets finding his daughter in the world of kidnapping and slavery in Europe. They could have taken a few different directions here or there but they stuck to the simple and straight forward getting the girl back at all costs.
The DVD edition contains the two full length films, both theatrical release and unrated version, and several making of features. The two film versions are the theatrical release and the unrated version which is only three minutes longer so there is not a whole lot of extra content, mainly a few extra swear words.
The extra content on the DVD release includes a making of feature called Le Making Of, Avant Premiere which is the premiere night of the film in France and Inside Action. The Inside Action is a neat side by side comparison of footage as it is filmed and the same scene as you see it in the movie for a real look at the power of editing.
The extras in the DVD release are not bad but the Avant Premiere is not really worth bothering with as it is in both English and French so is hard to follow. The DVD also contains the usual audio tracks for comments from the director, cinematographer and a couple of others in one and the writer in another track.
The DVD release is in standard definition with 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound in English and Dolby Digital Surround in Spanish and French with subtitles in English and Spanish. The DVD release does contain a few extra goodies but not really enough to make this version anything more than the film and a few minutes of extra bonus content.
Taken is a fast paced thriller and does a great job at entertaining for an occasional repeat viewing but does miss the mark for a really good movie.