Review: Taken

Taken (2009)
starring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Xander Berkeley, Leland Orcer, Jon Gries
dir. Pierre Morel


Producer/writer/director/craft service maestro Luc Besson has developed a formula for creating genre movies and he pretty much nails it every time. He has developed franchises like The Transporter and Taxi (in France, not America). As well as tight little hits like District B-13, Danny The Dog (aka Unleashed) and now Taken. Besson's secret is to strip away all of the bullshit and just deliver a film that has quick strokes of character, a plot that is easy to understand and eye popping action that delivers stand up and cheer justice. This time Besson re-teams with District B-13 director Pierre Morel who delivers a harsh, vengeance filled movie that makes Liam Neeson look like the badass of all badasses.

The plot is simple. Neeson plays Bryan Mills an ex-CIA operative who has retired to try and build a relationship with his estranged daughter. Neeson is overly protective and overly cautious. He has skills and knows how to use them to his benefit. All of this is good since his daughter is kidnapped while vacationing in Paris and Mills realizes there is a limited amount of time before she becomes just another statistic. The clock is ticking, so he shoots, stabs, electrocutes, breaks, busts and blows up every thing he comes in contact with to get her back. You're in and out of this movie in ninety minutes and you enjoy every second of it.

I would like to say, this type of film making isn't easy. Morel crafts visual images that build tension and fast pacing, without taking away from the moments Neeson needs to display who Mills is and how his mind works. His direction and framing is so good that even knowing Neeson is probably not the most limber actor on the planet, he looks like he could fuck up an army with a toothpick and Wet-Nap.

The film is a balancing act of action and character. It's an act that works because it's a movie about blacks and whites, there is no need for gray areas. This could become a direct to video Steven Segal piece of junk, but Besson and Morel know to keep it simple, tight and bring in solid talent who can deliver the goods.

My only complaint is that there is too much talent on display. Mill's former CIA buddies include character actors Jon Gries and Leland Orser who are given very little to do. I was expecting them to show up in the third act to pull off some Dirty Dozen style rescue mission, but they simply disappear after a couple scenes in the beginning. Is this a set up for a franchise like most of Besson's actioners seem to be? Who knows, I just wish there was more of Orcer and Gries.

But in the end it isn't about grand storytelling. It isn't about Neeson's character trying to get his ex-wife to understand him. It isn't about him finding out about himself. It isn't about putting his life back together and becoming a sensitive guy. It's about a dad fucking up a bunch of Parisians to save his daughter, end of story.

We live in a time where films have twists and convoluted plots and characters who have to resolve their entire life by the time closing credits role. Taken is as streamlined as Neeson's character. It's a bullet moving from point A to point B with no distractions. This is something that a lot of action films could take a note from.

8.5 out of 10