Still Take Care

Rating: Null/10 (19 June 2016)

Taken hostage in Istanbul by the Albanians whose relatives he mercilessly murdered in 'Taken', ex-CIA agent Bryan Mills has to rely on his daughter to rescue him in this action-packed sequel to the 2008 hit film. 'Taken 2' pushes the boundaries of credibility at many points (Neeson triangulating various locations) and it is not quite as well-paced as the first entry with half an hour of exposition before the action truly ignites, however, it is not a worthless sequel by any stretch of the imagination. The writers build up rapport between Liam Neeson and Maggie Grace as estranged father and daughter very well, and there is something quite amusing in how she does eventually get a long awaited real driving lesson from him late in the piece. The film's attempt to reverse the formula of the first film works surprisingly well too as she follows instructions from Neeson via cellular phone of how to rescue him. 'Taken 2' also acknowledges Neeson's callousness for the first time, and how with the Albanians he "killed them all like they were so many nothings" - a refreshing moral stance almost completely absence from the original film. The script is far from perfect though with the sudden reconciliation between Famke Janssen and Neeson seeming like a mere plot device, not to mention many improbabilities, but it is a surprisingly gripping watch and Neeson is as sympathetic as ever as a man out to protect his family whatever the cost. 'Taken 2' is may not necessarily be a superior motion picture to Part One, but it is a lot more interesting than one might expect.