Taken [Blu-ray]

So many action movies just have spectacular and unrealistic explosions for their own sake. You won't find much of the pointless effects in this one. This one has a story behind it. Enter Brian, a retired special forces operator who wants only to spend time wiht his daughter, access to whom is blocked by his estranged ex-wife and new husband. While he does his best to ensure she knows he loves her, she is a teenager and is really only concerned with herself. When she lies to him for permission to go to Paris, he reluctantly allows it provided she follow some requirements. She cannot even fulfill the first, which is to call him when the plane lands. While she is an innocent, he has traveled the world trouble-shooting and knows the dangers that await the unwary. Dangers that find his innocent daughter when she is kidnapped to be sold into slavery. Now, while he had been retired to be close to her, she has not been taken from him. Retirement is postponed. His pursuit is fast, brutal and relentless. The criminals who seek to prevent his recovery get shown no mercy. We see wonderfully choreographed fight scenes, quick and severe as they should be considering the stakes. We get to see the difference between mere thugs and a trained military professional. The criminals don't deserve mercy. Plowing through the seedy underworld of Paris, Brian moves further and further along the chain until he learns where his daughter is being sold. Overcoming adversity after obstacle after impediment, Brian refuses to give up. The final scenes show this determination come to the fore as he ignores wounds to continue his mission. While some of the gunplay near the end gets a bit extravagant, with automatic weapons being sprayed as stunt performers dive behind furniture somewhat reminiscent of Bruckheimer movies, it is for the most part well-done and not over glorified. It's a dirty business and it's shown that way. The stunt driving is extraordinary, not as fantastic as Ronin but certainly close to the same league. The story marches on without needless diversions, and while the resolution comes somewhat abruptly, with no bridge between the final act of retribution and the return to the States, it's forgiveable. While I would have liked Brian to tell his daughter off a bit about why he'd given her the rules in the first place, he's just not an "I told you so" kinda guy. He does what he does, he loves his daughter, and he's forthright about it all. While this version does give the theatrical and extended versions, there are no other special features. If you need the commentaries and behind the scenes features, you should limit yourself to the two-disc set. If you just want to watch a gritty and well-done action movie with realistic action, characters, and plot, then you should check this out.

The product (the DVD disk and its box) arrived fine; no complaints. Since this is a product review, I give it 5 stars. However, my movie review is mixed in the sense that it is an excellent movie. It may even be edifying. But, in the end, it is not entertaining in the sense that a terrible train wreck is not entertaining. The good: Liam Neeson's acting is superb. He plays the role perfectly of an ex-CIA operative who is out to rescue his daughter from sex traffickers in Paris. The other actors and actresses play their roles well and convincingly. The drama and pace is taut, and the plot is both credible and well-written. The bad: this movie is so incredibly dark that it was too painful to watch in one sitting. I almost always watch a movie to its end, but I came close to not doing so with this one. The only reason I finished watching Taken was that I wanted to see if the character Neeson played would succeed in rescuing his daughter. It was not the amount of violence that was my problem. The level and degree was appropriate for the plot and circumstances. The painful aspect was that Neeson's character is (understandably) willing to do anything necessary to rescue his daughter. Moreover, the crime of sex trafficking is so horrific that, as a viewer, I found myself empathizing with his ruthless and sometimes cruel treatment of those involved. But if that disturbs you (as it did me), then I don't recommend this film. A somewhat similar movie is Lethal Weapon with Mel Gibson and Danny Glover. The difference is that in Lethal Weapon, humor leavens the terrible elements, and the characters played by Gibson and Glover always seem to apply force in a manner appropriate for the evil of the bad guys without going beyond. Taken is more realistic, because most of us probably would go overboard as Neeson's character does. Original sin is deeply rooted in us all. But that doesn't mean I want to be reminded of this fact in a movie that I watch for entertainment.

Great series that I’ve watched many times. Saves money on rentals

In „96 Hours – Taken“ wird die Tochter des ehemaligen CIA-Agenten Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) während eines Urlaubs in Paris entführt. 😱✈️ Doch die Entführer haben nicht mit seinem speziellen „Skillset“ gerechnet. Er hat 96 Stunden Zeit, sie zu retten – oder sie wird für immer verschwinden. ⏳💀 🔹 Warum dieser Action-Kracher ein Muss ist: ✅ Liam Neeson in seiner Paraderolle – eiskalt, entschlossen & gnadenlos! 🔥🔫 ✅ Rasante Action & atemlose Spannung – ein Thriller ohne Verschnaufpause. 🚗💣 ✅ Kultige Zitate („I will find you and I will kill you“) – pure Gänsehaut! 🎭⚡ Fazit: 💡 „96 Hours – Taken“ ist einer der besten Action-Thriller der letzten Jahrzehnte. Packend, brutal & emotional – ein Film, der bis zur letzten Sekunde fesselt! 💥🎬 👉 Tipp: Entdecke außergewöhnliche Bildkalender, Puzzles & Leinwände – die perfekte Geschenkidee für jeden Anlass! 🎨🖼️ Erhältlich auf Amazon – einfach nach "Marco Warstat" suchen! ✨🧩

Passend zum Kinostart von Taken 2 habe ich es heute geschafft mir endlich den ersten Teil im Heimkino anzuschauen. Da ich keinerlei Erwartungen an den Film hatte wurde ich positiv überrascht, wirklich ein richtig guter und spannender Actionfilm. Keine Hirn-raus Film-an Action sondern auch dank Liam Neeson in der Rolle des verzweifelten Vaters emotional angehaucht und durch den politischen Hintergrund (vom Staat geduldeter Mädchenhandel) ein Actionfilm mit Substanz und Tiefsinn! Die Story dürfte bekannt sein, ansonsten zwei Sätze dazu: Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) hat 96 Stunden Zeit seine entführte Tochter in Paris zu finden! Dass er ein ehemaliger Topagent der Regierung ist kommt ihm dabei zugute, doch die Uhr tickt... Wenn es ein Film schafft, dass der Zuschauer den Atem anhält wenn etwas spannendes passiert, ist das ein gutes Zeichen. Taken (bei uns 96 Hours) hat es tatsächlich mehrmals geschafft. Die Story ist nicht neu, aber die Umsetzung durch Regisseur Pierre Morel ist richtig richtig gut gelungen! Liam Neeson im Alleingang gegen die albanische Mädchenhandel-Mafia, knallharte Action und Brutalität gehört da einfach dazu, ebenso wie eine furiose Verfolgungsjagd und ein großes Finale. Natürlich sind einige Szenen unrealistisch und übertrieben (selbstverständlich zum Vorteil vom Hauptdarsteller), es ist und bleibt nun mal ein Film. Auch wenn ich mir wünschen würde, dass es solche "Helden" im wirklichen Leben gibt und es eben solche Leute schaffen sich gegen gewisse Organisationen zu behaupten, wenn es schon die Staatsmacht nicht schafft! Ihr wollt Action, Spannung und gut unterhalten werden? Schaut euch diesen Film an! Tolles Drehbuch (aus der Feder von Luc Besson), tolle Regie, gute Kameraführung und ein Soundtrack, der in einigen Szenen die Wände wackeln lässt. Das Bild ist sauber und scharf, höchstens in den dunklen Szenen etwas Korn, was soll’s. Der deutsche Ton liegt leider "nur" in DTS 5.1 vor, während der englische Originalton in DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 vorliegt. Ich habe nicht verglichen, aber der deutsche Soundtrack hat sich durchaus wuchtig angehört, viele Effekte und eine permanente Räumlichkeit. Bonusmaterial wie folgt: 1. Echtzeit Geheimdienstinformationen (diverse Einblendungen während des Films, sowie eine Uhr die 96 Stunden runterzählt und einen Counter der verletzte und eliminierte Personen zählt) 2. Making Of (18 Minuten hinter den Kulissen, Interviews etc.) 3. Die Filmpremiere in Frankreich (5 Minuten Interviews und wie der Regisseur den Film ankündigt) 4. Inside Action: Von der Produktion zum finalen Film (6 Actionszenen im Detail, insgesamt 11 Minuten) 5 Sterne Popcornkino, theoretischer Punktabzug weil die BluRay kein Wendecover besitzt! Praktisch lasse ich es bei den 5 Sternen, der Rest passt und auf den Inhalt kommt es schließlich an!

I usually don't go for these shoot em up hero versus villain action flicks. To me, they seem too predictable. However, this one is different, Liam Neeson makes it believable and exciting. He is a very good actor, who expresses so much without saying anything. He is also not corny or cliche. When he says that he is going to get someone in a movie he seems to say it with conviction. I also like the way that as a good guy he still has a mean edge to him. I bought this DVD for $6.00 used in very good condition. Well worth the price. I will certainly revisit it for another viewing in the future.

I had reservations about this film as it has Liam Neeson in the main role as a US Security Op who dealt with preventing problems before they start but due to this job costing him his marriage & missing his one child growing up he retires to enjoy time getting to be a part of his daughter's life. His daughter & her friend get the chance to follow a favourite group around Europe with the first place being Paris so with great hesitation Liam's character lets the daughter go & no sooner has the daughter & her friend landed in Paris they are both abducted by Albanian Sex traffickers. What follows is a Father wanting his daughter back & does shoot,kill anyone who gets in his path. I would like to point out that this type of film has been done time & time again but for some reason this feels more like it draws you in & I think this may be down to the acting talents of Liam as should this movie had been with Steven Seagal in it then it would have been an okay movie but not a good one. The action is non stop & they make a movie with continual action & movement of the story with it never letting up for deep philosophical moments which is a good move as should you have liked the pace of say 24 then you will be avid to seeing this movie.

Parfait