By Melissa Garza
Liam Neeson is awesome. He is just great in everything he’s in. The fact that he was able to successfully portray Hanibal in The A-Team was more than impressive. I had never thought anyone other than the late great George Peppard could be Hannibal. I was proven wrong when Neeson not only sold the character but made it his own. I am hoping that the powers-that-be make a sequel to that too. I know it didn’t do great in the box office but it most certainly made its money back.
The original Taken was another success story for Neeson and a testimony to his acting ability. To see him portray such a badass in a believable way was amazing. On the surface he has the demeanor of a man who is docile and meek. He has portrayed so many characters where those qualities were highlighted. His reserved nature has aided him in a variety of roles and shown his capabilities countless times. His renderings in nearly any movie he starred in have been brilliant. To show the extent of his talent, one could easily name Schindler’s List (1993), Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999), Kinsey (2004), Batman Begins (2005) – the list goes on and on.
Generally it would be unlikely for a 60 year old man to be an action star. Few men can pull it off. Clint Eastwood is most certainly one of them. Eastwood could be 110 years old and still invoke fear and respect. The Expendables cast are all getting older, but that is the exception and not the rule. Not to mention, The Expendables is more-so attracting the nostalgia crowd rather than the ones looking for a true action flick.
Usually, we have people like Jason Statham, Vin Diesel, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson deliver subpar action. The days of Dirty Harry (1971), Death Wish (1974) were believed to be over. Then we were greeted with Taken (2008) which was action packed from beginning to end.
I couldn’t wait to see Taken 2. The movie opens with Bryan (Liam Neeson) finding out that his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) has a boyfriend and his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) is getting a divorce. Both Bryan and Lenore wish to reunite though neither openly admits it. To get over the pain of her separation, he invites both Lenore and Kim to Istanbul where he is doing a 3 day job.
They all go there but soon Bryan realizes he is being followed. Kim is back at the house but it is evident to him that both he and Lenore will be taken. He calls Kim who insists on helping. He knows that they are going to go after her too so he advises her where to hide and tells her that he will call again later. She follows instructions and is able to escape without being detected by the brutes.
When he is kidnapped a bag is put over his head but he is able to help determine where he is by listening to his surroundings and counting the seconds prior to a turn. Soon they arrive at the destination and Bryan is introduced to the man behind the abduction. His name is Murad Krasniqi, and he is the father of one of the men Bryan had killed. He claims to want justice and tells Bryan that all of the men he killed were husbands and brothers and that they had families. He says his intentions are to bring Bryan to the relatives of those he had murdered so that the survivors can obtain revenge for the deceased.
Bryan explains that the only reason he murdered Murad’s son and the rest of the men is because they had kidnapped Kim along with many other women forcing them to be sex slaves. Not only does Murad not seem surprised he emphatically declares that he doesn’t care what his son had done and that Bryan and Lenore’s demise is a certainty.
When left alone he is able to finagle his phone in a manner where he can call out. He calls Kim again and has her take out a map and advises her where to make markings. He then has her throw a grenade so he could hear the explosion and figure out how far away he was from the hotel.
Eventually, he escapes and then both he and Kim work to get Lenore back.
It’s an action packed movie and it’s quite awesome to see Liam kicking ass again. It goes without saying that Neeson’s acting is fantastic. His supporting cast also does a sensational job. I have always loved Famke Janssen. She was a shining star in House on Haunted Hill (1999) and sensational in the little known gem The Ten (2007). She like Neeson is both very versatile actress and ages remarkably well.
Maggie Grace did a great job as well. She was very believable. One of the best aspects of the film was the transition of Kim. In the beginning she was the same girl she was in the first one but when her parents are kidnapped and later when she works side by side with her father, she finds a newfound strength which she keeps for the rest of the film.
Though not as spectacular as the first, Taken 2 is not only worth watching but worth owning.
Scared Stiff Rating: 8/10
I thought Taken 2 was very good, and I am glad I rented it this weekend. It was awesome to see it continue from the first movie, and stay on the same storyline. I have the Blockbuster @Home service through DISH, so I went and exchanged one of my movies I got in the mail at the local Blockbuster. I love this option because I don’t pay any additional charge and I can exchange the movies from the mail anytime I want to. After I finished my shift at DISH on Friday I went and exchanged the movie, and got a great movie for the weekend.