slow start, still shoot 'em up

Rating: 6/10 (10 August 2013)

Ex-CIA operative Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) is on vacation in Istanbul with ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) and daughter Kim (Maggie Grace). Obviously, somebody gets taken and all hell breaks loose.
Liam Neeson is doing his grumpy bit again. Sure this is ridiculous escapism but it works as exactly that. The setup takes a bit of time. I guess they needed the time to introduce the ex and their relationship but it's wasted time that could be put to better use. It uses up all the good will of the surprise Neeson performance of the first movie. The first one was a good surprise. If you can park your brain in neutral, this film will be fine for you. There are some questionable occurrences. If you've seen the original, you know what to expect. Don't expect more.