Taken 2

It’s kind of hard to recall now, but back in 2008 when Taken was released it raised some serious eyebrows with its shock choice of Liam Neeson in the lead role. Frankly he hadn’t been cast as an action star since, well, ever. It was a nice surprise then to see that he could kick the required arse as Neeson killed everyone in the entire world and director Pierre Morel whipped the camera around as quick as possible in the hope that no-one would spend too much time concentrating on the somewhat dodgy portrayal of eastern Europeans. It was stupendously silly, but become a cult hit when it appeared on the DVD shelves. Now we have a sequel and, if you already thought that there was no need for one, watching it will only confirm what you already suspected. This is a real mess. So much so I can’t be bothered to go into much detail except to say that the relatives of the bad guys Bryan Mills (Neeson) bumped off in the first film are out for revenge here against Mills and his family. It takes forever to get going and the action is as tame as a newborn kitten when it eventually all kicks off. The reason for this will be unsurprising to the regular cinema goer. I’ve been saying for years that the 12/12A certificates are the biggest reason for some terribly below average films, especially in the action genre. Here director Olivier Megaton has cut the film in such a way that it’s virtually bloodless and the carnage incoherently edited. The lowest point being where Neeson offs someone by gently pushing their head back against a wall. It actually looks like the reel has skipped in the projector. Perhaps its harsh to completely blame Megaton (I expect he’s been ordered by the studio), but I think someone with more clout than him would have stood his ground a bit more. Even if you can get past all that, the plot itself is so incomprehensibly silly you’ll be slapping your forehead in disbelief as the “story” progresses. I can’t stop myself (spoiler my arse) from revealing the worst bit where Neeson spends the final moments of the film tracing back his steps in an elaborate memory recall procedure (“Man playing instrument? Turn left!”) in order to discover where his wife is being held. One problem here. About 30 minutes earlier Neeson himself had escaped from exactly the same location. You would have thought he might remember where it was…..

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Taken….for a ride! Rating: 3/10.