Bowel Movement Inducing

Rating: 4/10 (1 July 2009)

After watching the first 20 minutes or so of this film, I seriously considered taking a walk. As mind-numbingly silly and atrocious as it is, I decided to wait in hopes of a single interesting thing to happen. What you get at the beginning is a borderline obsessive father who only thinks about his 17 year old daughter, a birthday party for said daughter who gets a freaking horse from her stepfather (a HORSE?!), an ungrateful ex-wife, and a Britney Spears wannabe.
The daughter is the main reason this film is a turn-off. I don't doubt that Maggie Grace may be an adequate actress, but here she portrays such a dumb, childish, naive, annoying 17 year old with the mind of a 12 year old that perhaps it's the writing that is at fault. Just watch her run and jump clumsily with glee when she gets what she wants and you won't believe your eyes. It wouldn't be a spoiler to say that the movie has a happy ending (it's implied in the tag-line!), but I still found myself hoping for the worst for this pitiful, spoiled brat.
When the film does "start", there are a few cool sequences involving Liam Neeson maintaining his cool as he breaks bones in search for his daughter. However, Daniel Craig's Bond he is not.
Finally, I use the term "happy ending" loosely. Sure the girl is rescued, but what about the numerous others who are locked in the sex-trade industry? This film could have been so much more if it had portrayed some government initiative to bring it down, rather than the rescue of just one truly obnoxious American girl.