Less serious, but still good fun

Rating: 6/10 (8 October 2012)

The original Taken was excellent. We saw Liam Neeson enter a huge action role in the likes of Bond and Bourne, and gave us a surprising hit. It seemed inevitable that a sequel would be made. Despite still being entertaining and filled with some clever scenes, Taken 2 never quite reaches the same level as its original.
The reason the original Taken worked so well was that Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) was racing against the clock to find his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) in Paris after being kidnapped, giving him a reason to make quick decisions and pushing his boundaries with how far he'd go with violence and morality. In the sequel, the plot is pretty much the same, although he and his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) get taken instead of his daughter in Turkey. Essentially there's less mystery and suspense in this one as I feel the movie suffers due to its predictability and toned down violence for the PG-13/12 rating.
That's not necessarily a bad thing, though. Taken 2 works better as a popcorn movie than its original, having more action and car chases that keep you hooked at the movie's fast pacing once it gets going. The movie has some funny scenes, but there's also some stupid ones too which I will not spoil. I'm not sure if the movie's intention was to make fun of the original or not, but you'll notice the tone and humour of the movie is less serious than the original.
In conclusion, as much as I enjoy seeing Liam Neeson fight people in these movies, I don't think a third time will work with the exact same premise. In terms of entertainment and keeping me occupied, I'd give it an 8/10 for what it is. However, seeing another sequel for this might not be a good idea, but don't rule that option out!