Taken

So, yeah... Taken... It's quite an effective, relentless film. I can see why it was popular. There's the Jason Bourne shakycam that seems unavoidable in modern action films. There's the Jack Bauer torture scene and the CSI style flashbacks. It gets a bit silly, and fun, towards the end with Liam Neeson killing EVERYBODY. And it's Neeson who makes the film worth seeing. The guy is a real actor. If it had been Schwarzenegger or Stallone it would have felt less fresh. Clocking in at 1H25 the film doesn't overstay its welcome. The phone speach! I would maybe have liked a more French touch, something less Michael Bay and more Godard, but I guess that's expecting too much. Anyway... I enjoyed the film, but don't feel the need to rush down to the local cinema to watch Taken 2.