Taken
If Jason Statham wasn't otherwise disposed, racking up points on his licence for speeding and dangerous driving in Death Race, he'd almost certainly be headlining Pierre Morel's brutal, adrenaline-pumping action thriller.
If Jason Statham wasn't otherwise disposed, racking up points on his licence for speeding and dangerous driving in Death Race, he'd almost certainly be headlining Pierre Morel's brutal, adrenaline-pumping action thriller.
Instead, statuesque Irish actor Liam Neeson is the unlikely choice for leading man in this fast-paced jaunt through the French capital, based on a script by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen, who previously collaborated on The Transporter and its sequel.
Taken delivers more of the same mindless, high speed thrills and spills, casting Neeson against type as a merciless avenger who will stop at nothing to rescue his daughter from the clutches of sex traffickers.
The boulevards of Paris are littered with dead bodies and implausibilities by the time the end credits roll as the invincible hero relentlessly pursues his quarry, snapping arms as if they were dry twigs.
Government operative Bryan Mills (Neeson) retires from his perilous, covert life of 'prevention' to rebuild bridges with his spoilt 17-year-old daughter Kim (Maggie Grace).
He earns occasional money on bodyguard detail for celebrities including pop diva Sheerah (Holly Valance), who is a prime target for knife-wielding fans, but family must come first.
Bryan eventually bows to pressure from ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) and grants his daughter permission to visit Paris with best friend Amanda (Katie Cassidy).
'You don't have to worry,' smiles Kim sweetly.
'That's like telling water not to be wet, honey,' replies her old man.
Midway through a telephone call to Kim, to check the girls have arrived safely, all of Bryan's worst fears are confirmed.
Albanian thugs break into the girls' city centre apartment and drag away Amanda, then hunt down Kim while Bryan listens calmly across the Atlantic.
'If you let my daughter go now, that will be the end of it,' Bryan promises one of the abductors, who picks up Kim's 'phone.
'If you don't, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.' 'Good luck,' replies the man menacingly.
Boarding the next available flight, Bryan seeks out old contact Jean Claude (Olivier Rabourdin) who sets out the mission: 'You have a 96 hour window from when she was grabbed...
to never finding her.' Taken puts the pedal to the metal from the moment the girls are snatched, barely pausing for breath as Bryan wreaks havoc in the French capital.
The hero follows the evidentiary trail of breadcrumbs, leaping through the gaping plot holes, against a backdrop of the Champs-Elysees and the Seine, where a climactic night-time boat trip goes overboard on wanton bloodshed.
Action set pieces are well choreographed including a breakneck car chase and some bone-crunching fist fights than recall Jason Bourne's recent forays for ferocity and slick editing.
Neeson is imposing in the thuggish and somewhat two-dimensional lead role, bludgeoning anyone or anything that dares to get in his way, including common sense.
Release Date: Friday 26 September 2008
Certificate: 15
Runtime: 93mins
