Critic Watch: Taken

Rene Rodriguez of the Miami Herald gave this film 75 out of 100. Rene says if you are planning on going on a vacation in Europe, keep your parents far away from this film for it is their worst nightmare. This film is all formula says Rene but, it will keeps your interested from start to finish. He talks about how Neeson’s acting in this movie is really good due to the fact that he is as good of a “dramatic actor as he is a kick-butt action hero.”

In another positive review, Steven Rea of the Philadelphia Inquirer gave this film 75 out of 100. He found Liam Neeson’s acting to be surprisingly good and also liked the plot of the story. Steven says that Taken is a good because of the “Gaelic gravitas of its star” and because of the slam-bang chase scenes. He also says that there is a “xenophobic element” to Taken’s basis. This is that travel is not safe for Americans and foreigners are sinister by nature.

Derek Elley of Variety gave this film a run of the mill 60 out of 100. Derek talks about how easy it is for Neeson to turn into a “one man mean machine” without taking his shirt off. He says that Taken is much like the style of other “non-redemptive Euro shoot-’em-up films. Derek goes on saying that Taken, a pedal to the metal action film, will be liked by target audiences.

Tim Grierson of the LA Weekly gave this film 50 out of 100. He finds the movie Taken to be a “dumped-in-January film” that’s better than it actually needed to be. Grierson gives a brief overview of the movie, talking about how Bryan (Liam Neeson) is a retired operative that has to tracking down human traffickers to save his daughter. He says that through all of the chasing and fighting, Taken is still just a standard “not-my-child!” revenge story. Grierson points out that the main character brings a certain dignity to all of the “grubby nastiness” and says that Taken doesn’t need it. It needs more of “tongue-in-cheek machismo” that mocks the story’s “inanities.” On a final note, he says, “what, was Jason Statham busy?”

Manohla Dargis of The New York Times wrote one of the worst reviews for Taken, 30 out of 100. Dargis starts of by saying that the plot is dubious and that Taken starts out slow and nearly “stalls out.” He says that Mr. Besson, writer of Taken, is very predictable when it comes to movies that carry his brand. These movies tend to be untold action flicks and that is what category Taken is in.