A great thrill ride

Rating: 8/10 (16 February 2019)

This review contains spoilers.
Taken is an action thriller movie that premiered in 2008. The movie is directed by Pierre Morel and written by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen, The movie stars Liam Neeson as a retired CIA field operative named Bryan Mills. Bryan Mills' daughter is kidnapped by a sex trafficking ring in France which provokes Bryan to find and rescue her.
Taken is absolutely an engrossing thrill ride. The movie has great action scenes especially at the PG-13 rating the movie was assigned. The movie moves at an incredibly quick pace for its 90 minute running time. The movie has the hyper-competent Bryan Mills solve many mysteries off of a few clues that are given to him. This can make for an interesting watch as so much of the movie has Bryan's thought process presented on the screen. This makes for interesting scenes as Bryan pieces things together from clues and observations.
In addition to watching thrilling investigations, the movie features exciting action scenes and chases. The action scenes are not anything new in the genre. However, Liam Neeson's performance and screen presence help elevate the movie this way.
The movie features loads of action scenes. These action scenes have a unique flavor to each of them in either setting or execution.
The movie does have decent acting but it is mostly bland. Liam Neeson is the exception here as he becomes a capable action movie star, None of the other actors stand out. This is more of a flaw on the writing and direction for focusing so much of it on Bryan Mills. The other actors do not have too much to work with from the script.
The writing can feel basic and the direction bland at times. This is an action movie and not one that prioritizes depth in its writing. The action is executed well and it really does show in the box office results. This is a movie that is a nice surprise in the year of release. The movie should be watched with a low amount of expectations and the audience will be pleasantly surprised as I was.
I would recommend 'Taken.' The movie is a solid action flick.
Grade: B