Taken – I Squeezed Cynthia’s Hand So Hard That It’s No Joke!

I am a big fan of Liam Neeson – less so for that Star War film but more so for say “Schindler’s List” and “Michael Collins”.  So naturally, I like “Taken”.  Did you know that it is scripted by Luc Besson?  “The Fifth Element” is my all time favorite.  And surprise-surprise, “Taken” is directed by Pierre Morel who has also partnered with Luc Besson in “District 13”.  All of us in the Movie Review Squad have watched “District 13” back in 2006.

While all of us love “Taken”, TK thinks that the open scenes are a bit too slow.  For me, I appreciate the character development, especially for this type of film.  To the least, you get to know where those special ‘capabilities’ of Neeson’s character – Bryan Mills – come from, his relationship with his daughter, and the situation he is now at.  Rather than a 007 or Bourne kind of intensity from beginning to end, there is a build up right to the point when Bryan’s daughter, Kim, was kidnapped in Paris, sold to a prostitution ring, and from then onwards, all hell break loose.

Maybe such circumstance has a higher urgency than ransom or even murder.  I didn’t expect the violence, I didn’t expect the excitement.  I was squeezing Cynthia’s hand throughout the show.  At the end of it, I felt some soreness on my jaws.  Gosh.  I must have been grinding my teeth hard.

TK said that “Taken” reminded him of the TV series 24.  Quite true.  The girl has a similar stage name some more.  Cynthia said that the show reminded her of “Your Name Is Justine” (a very painful movie to watch based on human trafficking) from the content point of view.  For me, “Taken” is like a series of little quests on the journey of a very desperate father trying to find his daughter in a foreign country, at times beyond comprehension how things could happen that way.  Kind of remind me of that one online role playing game’s non-stop questing (don’t think, just do).  90 minutes seemed to have passed way too quickly.  I want more.