Am I the only person to notice that movies keep getting longer and longer? Granted, some of the longest movies I can think of come from forty years ago, but it seems as if the tread now is reversing. As proof, look at the highest earns of the year. The top movies were all over two hours, and the rest were animated movies. It is becoming really rare to find an action or drama that is an hour and a half long. When you do find one, you've only got about a ten percent chance of liking it. I believe the reason for that is we live in the action of details and plausibility, and it takes a considerable amount of time to establish that and still keep the audience on the edge of their seat. The reason that I loved the first Taken movie was because it achieved this seemingly impossible feat.
Coming into the second I didn't know what to expect I was just extremely excited with slight apprehension. Perhaps I should have paid more heed to that hesitancy. Don't get me wrong the movie wasn't terrible in any sense of the word. I think someone on my Facebook described it best as... meh. It was decent. Liam Neeson was of course incredible and it's hard to believe he is still doing some of the insane fights scenes at his age. Furthermore, they still a good amount of scenes that keep you guessing whether they he will make it or not. But overall I wasn't Taken anywhere new, no pun intended! (OK I really meant the pun... it's my title for goodness sake.) And the scope just seemed... insignificant.
On the teeter tooter of life this movie is pretty much balanced between good and bad. Of course the only way to know for sure is to see it, but since it's only an hour and a half long I'd suggest only paying a $1.27 at Redbox rather than 10 something at your local theater. I will let you know that I'm going to mention some specific details of the movie but don't worry, it's nothing you wont see coming yourself. The movie is completely predictable if you saw the first. So let's take a look at what is on both sides of this teeter tooter that makes it balance the way it does.
First of all, I really liked it as a continuation on the narrative of Bryan Mills. We get a closer look into what kind of man you have to be in order to have "skills that make (him) a nightmare for people like you." The little details they add about him waiting outside of his daughter's house until exactly 2:00 show the strict obedience to order that borders on compulsive is something the average person is incapable of. Also, am I the only one that hated the ex-wife in the first one for divorcing such a cool guy? Well, in the movie we get to see hints of that relationship being fixed which provided a nice bit of closure for us "hero-gets-the-girl" types. Plus, we learn that he isn't retired and wasting his talents anymore but putting them to good use and making some good money. I love that they don't try and paint the hero of the movie as having had a terrible life since his last triumph! He's a family man and you all know how important family is to me! (Yes, Albanian kidnappers, this is a warning right now to stay away from my son... otherwise... I will find you!)
Second, my favorite scene of the movie is when Liam Neeson's character himself gets kidnapped. I really believe that the guys who writes these films are just trying to make a "what to do when your kidnapped" tutorial and make people want to see it. It was really fascinating to see some of the techniques that can be used in that situation to keep you in control of the situation. Even more exciting is when we get to see Bryan Mills instruct his daughter on how to pinpoint his exact location. (Although I may need to watch the film again to get that technique down...) It was a nice reversal from the last movie that makes it feel like its own sequential narrative and not a repeating continuation. One thing is for sure, from here on out I'm paying a heck of a lot more attention to maps of the cities I visit!
Finally, I liked that this movie was a little less cringe-worthy. I'm sorry, I consider myself a tough guy but I don't think that requires me to get used to the sight of a man being tortured. I thought it was a slight on the character of hero in the last movie when Bryan Mills left a guy to be electrocuted death. (And I bet he is regretting that now too...) Plus, you had all the human trafficking that awakens you to the cold hard reality of life. So, I guess to sum up what I liked was that I didn't walk away having lost faith in humanity! So if you're a little squeamish, this one is for you! Unfortunately, all the pluses of this film are equally balanced with a negative.
Do we have any card players in the audience? You know what I love about card games? Wild cards! They are so great because they can be whatever you need them to be at that particular moment. If you need a 9 of diamonds, it can be just that. If you need a queen of hearts, you got it. Wild cards are great for card games. Sadly, the wild card doesn't translate well into stories. They just don't make any sense whatsoever. Unfortunately for Taken 2, that's exactly what they created with Bryan Mills daughter. If the script needed her to be vulnerable little girl, that's what she was. If she suddenly need to be Rambo in a bikini.,you got it. It may sound great until you realize... Hey, wait a second, this girl is a walking contradiction. The jumps from vulnerability to hardcore were ludicrous in the extreme. Oh, and how the heck am I supposed to believe that the girl who can't pass a drivers test suddenly turns into Jason Bourne behind the wheel the second her feet hit Turkish soil? I need a whole lot more shaky camera to buy that!
Coming into the second I didn't know what to expect I was just extremely excited with slight apprehension. Perhaps I should have paid more heed to that hesitancy. Don't get me wrong the movie wasn't terrible in any sense of the word. I think someone on my Facebook described it best as... meh. It was decent. Liam Neeson was of course incredible and it's hard to believe he is still doing some of the insane fights scenes at his age. Furthermore, they still a good amount of scenes that keep you guessing whether they he will make it or not. But overall I wasn't Taken anywhere new, no pun intended! (OK I really meant the pun... it's my title for goodness sake.) And the scope just seemed... insignificant.
On the teeter tooter of life this movie is pretty much balanced between good and bad. Of course the only way to know for sure is to see it, but since it's only an hour and a half long I'd suggest only paying a $1.27 at Redbox rather than 10 something at your local theater. I will let you know that I'm going to mention some specific details of the movie but don't worry, it's nothing you wont see coming yourself. The movie is completely predictable if you saw the first. So let's take a look at what is on both sides of this teeter tooter that makes it balance the way it does.
First of all, I really liked it as a continuation on the narrative of Bryan Mills. We get a closer look into what kind of man you have to be in order to have "skills that make (him) a nightmare for people like you." The little details they add about him waiting outside of his daughter's house until exactly 2:00 show the strict obedience to order that borders on compulsive is something the average person is incapable of. Also, am I the only one that hated the ex-wife in the first one for divorcing such a cool guy? Well, in the movie we get to see hints of that relationship being fixed which provided a nice bit of closure for us "hero-gets-the-girl" types. Plus, we learn that he isn't retired and wasting his talents anymore but putting them to good use and making some good money. I love that they don't try and paint the hero of the movie as having had a terrible life since his last triumph! He's a family man and you all know how important family is to me! (Yes, Albanian kidnappers, this is a warning right now to stay away from my son... otherwise... I will find you!)
Second, my favorite scene of the movie is when Liam Neeson's character himself gets kidnapped. I really believe that the guys who writes these films are just trying to make a "what to do when your kidnapped" tutorial and make people want to see it. It was really fascinating to see some of the techniques that can be used in that situation to keep you in control of the situation. Even more exciting is when we get to see Bryan Mills instruct his daughter on how to pinpoint his exact location. (Although I may need to watch the film again to get that technique down...) It was a nice reversal from the last movie that makes it feel like its own sequential narrative and not a repeating continuation. One thing is for sure, from here on out I'm paying a heck of a lot more attention to maps of the cities I visit!
Finally, I liked that this movie was a little less cringe-worthy. I'm sorry, I consider myself a tough guy but I don't think that requires me to get used to the sight of a man being tortured. I thought it was a slight on the character of hero in the last movie when Bryan Mills left a guy to be electrocuted death. (And I bet he is regretting that now too...) Plus, you had all the human trafficking that awakens you to the cold hard reality of life. So, I guess to sum up what I liked was that I didn't walk away having lost faith in humanity! So if you're a little squeamish, this one is for you! Unfortunately, all the pluses of this film are equally balanced with a negative.
Do we have any card players in the audience? You know what I love about card games? Wild cards! They are so great because they can be whatever you need them to be at that particular moment. If you need a 9 of diamonds, it can be just that. If you need a queen of hearts, you got it. Wild cards are great for card games. Sadly, the wild card doesn't translate well into stories. They just don't make any sense whatsoever. Unfortunately for Taken 2, that's exactly what they created with Bryan Mills daughter. If the script needed her to be vulnerable little girl, that's what she was. If she suddenly need to be Rambo in a bikini.,you got it. It may sound great until you realize... Hey, wait a second, this girl is a walking contradiction. The jumps from vulnerability to hardcore were ludicrous in the extreme. Oh, and how the heck am I supposed to believe that the girl who can't pass a drivers test suddenly turns into Jason Bourne behind the wheel the second her feet hit Turkish soil? I need a whole lot more shaky camera to buy that!
My biggest let down was the scope of the film. With the first movie, we had a slow escalation of tension as each ticking second lead to a more desperate Liam Neeson until finally it exploded in an exciting, though predictable, climax. We get none of that build in this film. We jump straight from building the scenario to action in seconds and stay at about that same level the rest of the film until we get to a (once again predictable) disappointing finish sans climax. (Sans means without for those that are confused.) Don't get me wrong, the action is entertaining for the most part, but you can only watch the same guy shoot Albanians in the chest so many times.
The plot just feels small. From the moment the flame is ignited, burn time is only a matter of hours. In essence, it boils down to this: Guy gets kidnapped with ex-wife, escapes with the help of his daughter, goes back to save ex-wife... the end. If he had the foresight of putting ex-wife in ANY different location when he himself escaped, we would not have last third of the movie. You might say, "Well, the last film's plot consisted of girl getting kidnapped, dad getting ticked of, killing lots of people, and rescuing daughter." That is true, but what made it so great was the satisfaction of Mills exacting his vengeance in Count of Monte Cristo fashion but impromptu! Furthermore, in the first film Liam Neeson brings down an entire system of human trafficking. In this one... he stops an old man completely ignorant of the fact that his son was a D.B... When you compare the two... you have to wonder, is this really the best you can follow up with?!
**SPOILER ALERT**
**Seriously! Remember when you didn't heed the spoiler alert last time and it ruined the movie!!**
Last Chance...
Now I know I said there really wasn't much to spoil but if you haven't seen the movie I'm about to complain about two specific details: the ignorance of which will allow you to enjoy the first half of the movie a lot more. So I'd advise skipping this paragraph if you want to see the film. First of all, the scene where Kim, the daughter, drives the taxi through the U.S. embassy road block. Really? The Library of Congress in National Treasure 2 had better road blocks! And no one had the sense to shoot the tires!? Of course, if they didn't that would end the movie... but really? Ridiculous! And secondly, not only am I supposed to believe that Liam Neeson has a hard time beating up a pudgy Albanian in a joggers suit who is a good foot shorter than him, I'm also supposed to believe they entered a Street Fighter competition in the middle of the movie!
Seriously, the second they climbed up on the raised circular platform to fight I was convinced the Mortal Combat theme would come on the loud speakers and Sub-Zero and Scorpion would walk out. (Actually... that would have been a more exciting twist than what actually happens.)
Some of you may think I'm going to complain about the fact that he is willing to let the old man go in the end. Actually, I was OK with it! In fact, I thought the most relateble moment for Bryan Mills was in that one moment that we see him exhausted and tired of all the fighting and near death experiences, not to mention how annoyed he is at having his family in danger all the time. I found it further plausible because he really didn't know much about this guy so he gave the villain a chance while not trusting him by a long shot. The down side? From the second he goes back to get his wife, I knew they were going to set up for a third, and I felt pity for the film makers. You've got no where to go from here, dudes. Who is there left to kidnap? Let it go. Here's hoping they come to their senses. ;)
Did I mention I loooooove your title? ;)
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