TAKEN 3 MOVIE REVIEW

Onto their third installment, the Taken series is coming together for a story that's…oops no spoilers. ‘I don’t know who you are, but I will find you and I will kill you’. Bryan Mills once said it and now even kids say it to their fantasized enemies. Surprisingly, you almost know how a Taken movie would have a conflict and arrive at a conclusion, but you still watch it. The makers have made it into a father-daughter movie than marketing it as an action-drama type movie. Like the saying, one is not better than the sum of its parts, Taken 3 doesn't meet your expectations or fit the final move of a puzzle. Trilogies and sequels are always tricky.

 

Even if you trip over a banana peel, Bryan (Liam Neeson) unlike John McClaine (of the Die Hard series) might come to the rescue. That’s the life Liam Neeson has given to the character sketch of a possibly retired CIA operative. Bryan and Lenore have parted their ways as a married couple, but just sit over a drink to talk about their only daughter Kim. Lenore is married to a business man named Stuart, but she develops a disinterest towards him and wants to get back to her ex, Bryan. This isn't an emotional tale of a triangular love, it’s an action film with lots to do with human emotions. That’s something special about the Taken series; it is always seen as a film about Bryan who does anything to protect his family.  

 

Taken 3 is what you already know and what you've already seen. A Russian mob who likes killing, a loser cop with a stupid bunch of assistants, the unbeatable Bryan, the adorable daughter Kim and a list of problems to be addressed. Taken 3 has no sugar, no eggs, but Liam the cherry, saves the cake. You watch Taken movies for him. You watch it to know how he pacts the ongoing problem, kills the villain and saves his family. Another costlier Taken is coming up? This installment seems to be unusually low on the production value. One tacky action sequence puts a rough patch on the already slow screenplay - there are the usual chases, rabbit hole like hiding places, hi-tech weaponry and the sadly predictable suspense intended climax. 

 

Liam Neeson, a Russian by birth, is one naturally looking action hero who can act for a change. His physique, body language and the whole bunch of wrinkles on his face tell the state of a professional killer who’s got his emotions intact under any circumstance. Bryan (Liam) can face it, deal with it and get out of it. That’s what he’s good at. More than a deadly killer by his side, he’s bothered about the adult issues his daughter faces. He loves her to death and she’s his priority.

 

Something cute about the Taken series is, the father-daughter package. That’s a rarity for a story which is primarily an action movie. There are flaws and duds but you like Taken 3 for Liam and his gimmicks. How do you stay uptight, genuine, smart and spontaneous is what you would've taken out of the Taken series. Using Bryan’s tone, ‘You might like it or not like it, but you can’t ignore it’. Some special interest with the intricacies of the twists and the action portions, Taken 3 would have been as smart and apt as its previous ones.