A group of us at Google+ – though not everyone has met everyone in real life – have at least two things in common. We love the movie Taken and we live in Singapore. So, when one of us suggested a Taken 2 movie outing, we have decided to make it yet another Google+ real life hangout. It was fun. We have a great time and followed through with an Indonesian dinner buffet.
I have almost forgotten how I felt about Taken until I read my post written three years ago. Our movie buddy TK with his superhuman memory at the end of the show commented that Taken 2 has a slightly slower pace. Now that I have read what was written, I agree. But that doesn’t make Take 2 any less entertaining.
Initially, I was skeptical on this sequel. In Taken, the daughter was taken. Liam Neeson’s character has killed everyone in the story and saved her daughter. In Taken 2, the parents are taken. Relatives of the deceased are now seeking revenge. What can an untrained daughter do?
Turns out that the daughter does have a role to play in saving her parents. Clever script the film has. Is that realistic? I would say for someone who was been taken before, the survival instinct must have kicked in. The backdrop of this installment is Istanbul. To those who have yet to see the country, this backdrop looks exotic.
The challenge Taken 2 has is that there is little surprise when you have already watched the previous installment. The only cliffhanger to me is that knowing Luc Besson, he may let the hero dies (like in Léon: The Professional). The intensity then comes not from the would be surprises but the clever execution of the rescue mission. To me, Taken 2 is a worthy follow up to the original movie. It looks as though there will be Taken 3. Now, it would be great if this Google+ real time hangout group continues to keep in touch and have a Taken reunion for the next installment.