Taken 3

Plot synopsis:
A couple of Russian thugs come into a man's home and quietly take him away from his wife. The man is brought before a Russian mob boss, Oleg Malankov (Sam Spruell), who demands that the man opens the safe in the room they're standing in. The safe is opened, but it's empty. Malankov calls his employer and tells him there is nothing in the safe, but he will leave him something else. Malankov shoots the man dead.Meanwhile, Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) buys a giant panda bear for his daughter Kim's (Maggie Grace) birthday. At home, Kim holds up a pregnancy test and looks at it worriedly. Bryan shows up with the panda, followed moments later by Kim's boyfriend Jamie (Jonny Weston). Kim comments that Bryan is predictable, while Jamie says Kim is as well, since she follows the same routine and goes to the convenience store to get the exact same orange smoothie drink from the exact same position. Bryan departs and takes the panda with him, even though Kim admits to feeling a bit bad about not wanting it. After he leaves, Bryan talks to his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) on the phone about Kim. He invites her over to dinner but she declines.Lennie surprises Bryan by showing up at his place while he's making dinner. She tells him that she's not very happy at home with her husband Stuart (Dougray Scott). She makes a pass at Bryan by kissing him. However, he knows this would be inappropriate and he politely turns down Lennie's advances.During a game of golf with his friends, Bryan gets a call from Kim and she invites him to meet with her at a diner. She prepares to tell him about her pregnancy when they see a bratty child making a fuss at another table. Kim gets nervous and tells Bryan she wants his advice on whether or not she should get a puppy.Bryan is visited by Stuart, who thinks that in order for his marriage with Lennie to work, Bryan needs to be out of the picture and that he should stop seeing her socially. Bryan assures Stuart that they're only friends and that there is nothing going on between them.Bryan gets a text from Lennie asking him to meet her at his apartment for some bagels. Bryan gets the bagels and returns to find a knife on the floor. He goes in the bedroom and sees Lenore lying dead on the bed with her throat slashes. As Bryan recoils in horror, two policemen burst in with guns pointed at Bryan. They prepare to handcuff him when Bryan ends up cuffing both of them. He jumps out the window as he hears more cops coming. They chase him through the streets until he runs into a garage and escapes through a hatch door into the river and out to the basin.Bryan calls Kim from a payphone while she is at Lennie's home looking for a sweater. He breaks the news to Kim about her mother's murder and that he is now being framed. He tells her to stay safe and that he will protect her. Kim steps back in shock and sits down to cry.Hot on Bryan's trail is Inspector Franck Dotzler (Forest Whitaker). He and his men investigate the crime scene and also visit Stuart and Lennie's home. Stuart returns immediately from a business trip. He is brought in to identify Lennie's body at the morgue. He breaks down and tells Dotzler about Bryan's past.Bryan sneaks into the morgue and finds Lennie's body. He solemnly touches her face and collects a hair sample.The cops inspect the parking garage where Lennie left her car. Bryan gets a scan on the car's GPS and sees that Lennie went to the gas station prior to her death. He goes to the gas station and sneaks into the security room to play a video. He sees footage of Lennie being snatched by a masked man and thrown into a van. One of the men has a star-like tattoo on his hand. Two detectives stop at the same gas station and learn that Bryan was there. They find him in the security room and arrest him. Bryan goes in calmly.The detectives inform Dotzler of their arrest of Bryan, but, since Dotzler has just followed up on Bryan's past, he knows that Bryan is setting them up. In the backseat of the police cruiser, Bryan carefully uncuffs himself and knocks out one cop while forcing the other to keep driving. The detectives chase Bryan as he takes control of the cruiser. This leads them through a garage where the cruiser ends up falling down an elevator shaft. The car explodes, but Bryan escapes. Dotzler talks to Bryan on the phone and tells him to stand down since everyone is going to be looking for him. Bryan responds, "Good luck."Bryan visits his friend Sam (Leland Orser), to whom he gave the sample to and also informs him of what happened to Lenore. Sam stands by Bryan and is willing to help him. He tells Sam he wants to go to the funeral.Lenore's funeral takes place, with everyone going to console Kim and Stuart. Sam goes over to Kim and tells her to follow her "predictable schedule." He motions to the button on his lapel, which is a hidden camera. Kim knows her dad is watching and she smiles.Kim leaves Stuart's home when she sees that he kept too many guards around. One detective follows Kim as she goes to the convenience store to get her smoothie drink. She finds the one she wants and finds a note on it that says "Drink me now". She drinks it all in one standing. She then goes to school and feels nauseous during class. She goes to the bathroom and is pulled into a stall by Bryan. They embrace and he gives her a serum to counter what he put in the drink to make her nauseous. Kim comes clean about the pregnancy. With little time, Bryan tells Kim he'll find the real culprits right before the detectives burst in. Bryan is already gone by then.While driving away, Bryan is pursued by some Russian thugs. They run him off the road, causing his car to explode. One goon comments on going to get drunk. Bryan gets a man to let him drive his car to follow the goons to the liquor store. Bryan beats the thugs all around the store until they are all knocked out, save for one last man - the man with the tattoo on his hand. Bryan takes him down and orders him to tell him who sent him. The man says he would rather die than tell, so he grabs Bryan's gun, puts it in his mouth, and pulls the trigger.Bryan locates Stuart, who retreated to a beach house. He knows Stuart sent the thugs, and Bryan takes Stuart to another area and waterboards him for information. Stuart was involved in a bad business deal with Oleg Malankov, and Lennie unfortunately became a victim of his when Stuart failed to return the man his money. He was merely counting on Bryan to find out about the situation and to utilize his killing skills to make the problem disappear. Stuart also tells Bryan that Malankov is a trained killer that joined the army and Special Forces, and that he is just as good at killing as Bryan. Together, with Kim, Sam, and other friends of Bryan's, they have Stuart set up a meeting with Malankov. Malankov arranges for them to meet at a building downtown.Bryan gets his opening to run through the building, beating up and killing all of Malankov's goons before finding the man himself in his apartment. The two fight each other, with Malankov nearly shooting Bryan, until Bryan takes the gun from him and shoots him twice. Bryan approaches Malankov to deliver the final shot, until Malankov says they were played by the same man - Stuart. Bryan leaves Malankov to die slowly.In Sam's van, Kim sees some texts from Lenore's phone that mention going to a specific location. She texts Bryan and then tries to contact him on his earpiece. Stuart knows what's happening, so he grabs Kim and shoots Sam in the neck. Stuart flees with Kim. The cops find the van with Sam unconscious but alive.Bryan realizes Kim is in trouble and he hijacks a car to go after her and Stuart. He tracks her location and sees she's headed for the airport. The cops track Bryan and follow him. At the airport, Stuart gets his private plane ready to take off with him and Kim. The pilots begin to steer the plane off the tarmac when Bryan drives over quickly and plows through the wheels, taking the plane down. Stuart emerges from the plane with Kim at gunpoint. She manages to escape him, leaving him to Bryan. Bryan puts together just how Stuart tried to get away with Lenore's murder while beating the man senseless. Before Bryan can kill Stuart, they hear the police sirens getting closer. Stuart says Bryan can't kill him now, and when Bryan tries to prove him wrong, he looks over to Kim, who shakes her head and urges him not to. Bryan figures that Stuart will probably get a good lawyer and be out of jail in a few years, and that's when Bryan will get him. He knocks Stuart out and leaves him to get arrested.Bryan meets with Dotzler in his office. Dotzler says he knew Bryan was innocent because he found the bagels in his apartment, and they were still warm. By that logic, he couldn't have bought bagels and then committed murder. They part ways, and Dotlzer closes Bryan's files.Bryan joins Kim and Jamie on the pier. He supports the two of them as they expect their child. Kim says that if it's a girl, they will name her after Lenore. Bryan agrees with that choice.

Tags: revenge, action, murder, violence, flashback

Review:
Anyone who is mildly intelligent will find it laughable.Where do I start, the way this film was shot was poor at best, no scene lasted longer the 3 minutes to try and achieve the same relentless pace we enjoyed from the first Taken movie.
I think they should just withdraw Taken 2 and Taken 3 and admit that they should have stopped at the first one.This movie was so boring, and when you expected to see some action scenes, you were getting yourself in the paranoid mind of a director who wanted to experiment on the poor audience.
Spectacular and moving following starred by the retired CIA operative Mills (Liam Neeson) with plenty of action-packed , thrills , suspense , violence and high body-count .
This is a nice sequel released six years after the first , here Liam Neeson returns as ex-covert operative Bryan Mills, whose long awaited reconciliation with his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen married to financer Stuart St. John : Dougray Scott ) is tragically cut short when she is brutally murdered .
Nail-biting and extremely violent film with a phenomenal Liam Neeson as an implacable avenger daddy .This stirring film contains intrigue , thrills, chills, frenetic action, shootouts , long run time car pursuits , car crashes , and violent fights .
Liam Neeson acting as hard-rock , two-fisted retired agent is top-notch , doing all his own fight sequences for the movie , he is the wronged father who must lay his life on the line to protect his intimate family against time and an army of ominous Russian mobsters .
Clearly Neeson took a bit of persuading to play the role a third time, but it would appear that three factors persuaded him: first, he didn't want to do any travelling this time (so all the shooting -in both senses of the word - is in the overly-familiar Los Angeles where he goes "down the rabbit hole"); second, apparently he didn't think anyone should be taken this time (and the writers obeyed the injunction until near the end when they just couldn't resist any more); and third, he wanted the money.This is a movie which divides the critics and the public: the former have been very condescending about it but the later enjoy Mills using his special skills again and again (and you can't really blame them).
Taken 3: Liam Neeson is the king of action movies.
Worst of all Forest Whitaker's character Detective Franck Dotzler was said to be smart numerous times, but the grand conclusion he makes at the end of the film is something the audience figured out in ten seconds.
I don't want to give away the big surprise but it has to do with "very tasty bagels."I honestly felt bad for Liam Neeson during this movie.
Moreover, it is a joy to see Liam Neeson in this role again.The director Olivier Megaton has an irksome penchant for frenetic, up-close, disorienting action sequences whereby shots are rarely longer than two seconds.
If you thought Taken 2 could not be beaten in terms of stupidity, laughable dialogue, totally unbelievable (in the literal sense of the word) and ridiculous characters, and yes, unfortunately, forgettable action, then think again!
The convoluted and entirely uninspired plot is supposed to be based on Bryan Mills' (Liam Neeson) attempts to find the ones responsible for his wife's murder (which police were made to believe he perpetrated), yet somehow the movie has more to do with his countless run-ins with the police - who I must say are the worst set of law enforcers I have ever seen on film - and the ensuing chase sequences, and, of course, as always, Mills ends up escaping them.
This movie might not have you glued to your screens on account of its heart-pounding action, but it just might get you rolling on the floor laughing at its hysterical storyline - if you are into that sort of thing.It is all too apparent that Liam Neeson has had enough with this franchise.
I now actively hate Forrest Whitaker!There was a point in the movie where I felt his character actually liked the fact that Bryan Mills escaped and was causing havoc.
Not really a Taken movie, more of what you would expect if they wanted to do a TV series on the Neeson character and they started with a long pilot.It is much better than Taken 2 but then again so is footage of your dog's birthday party.It is not bad.
Whatever happened to watching a movie for fun and escapism and having a good time, because this film is certainly all that.I took my 15 yr old daughter along as well and she loved it, as did I.
The story was actually quite strong too and Forest Whitaker did an amazing job of adding spice and balance to the overall plot.If you are a fan of the Taken series, I believe that you will like this fresh new-look plot.
On the level of a action sequel this film delivers the goods it is none stop from the start with all the high end goodies of thrilling car chases, last gasp escapes, riveting shoot-em' up's all wrapped up in a glossy stylised soup, that while providing nothing new, is still very entertaining for action film fan's.
As the movie started, I began expecting unique story line and impressive ending that differs from the previous Taken Film Series.
While we all now know what to expect from Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) it is the performance of the head cop (Forest Whitaker) that adds something to the film that was maybe lacking in Taken 2.
Staying just one step ahead of the pursuing cops, Bryan's focus rapidly turns to his daughter Kim Bauer - oh, sorry, wrong franchise - Kim Mills (Maggie Grace) and keeping her safe from the bad guys.Taken 2 was an energetic roller-coaster of a thriller also directed by Olivier Megaton (note: not his name at birth!) and to give Taken 3 a bit of credit parts of this film - following a painfully slow start with a lot of wordy exposition - live up to popcorn-munching past glories.
Apart from a damp squib of a final scene (probably hastily written as they were in the pub) the script by the same Taken team of Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen is passable.In general though, this film is all over the place.Editing is of the frenetic Bourne variety but not to the same standard: a specific and horrible example is an early car chase which is almost incoherent in the way it is staged and cut together.
To top this off, two separate incidents with Mills in exploding cars simply defy any possible suspension of disbelief: this was more like Neeson in a film remake of the "indestructible" Captain Scarlett TV series than a supposedly realistic film.This may be a personal view, but I have a long-standing loathing of the movie trait of bumping off a key character at the start of a sequel after you, as the viewer, have invested the emotional energy in the previous film rooting for them to survive.
But this particular type of cheap storytelling trick just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.So go and see Taken 3 if you are happy to park your brain at the door and buy a bumper box of popcorn, but this is far from a classic and is a particularly stark coming down to movie-earth for me two days after watching the brilliant "Whiplash".(If you enjoyed this review please see my other reviews at bob-the-movie-man.com and enter your email address to receive future posts.
I really enjoyed this movie from start to finish, it had great story a lots of twists, and that is why I consider it better, then the second installment, that can be close to the first, It has drama, great action, thriller and bone crunching hand combat, followed by great car chases that is longer and better and different to Bourne Ultimatum.
Anyway it also has nice drama blended with suspense,this time building the character into the story was more emphasized.I was also surprised when Brian Mills mates had more screen this time.In fact their characters are more elevated then to the first and second Taken movies.
While I love Neeson and definitely love Bryan Mills, Taken 3 is a tired exercise in what we already know he does best...kill people.
So, if you want a great action movie with stellar acting, go see Taken 3 and continue the journey of Bryan Mills.
It is just another action movie.This movie is about Bryan Mills (Neeson) taking on the people who kill his wife as the police chase him.
The star cast could have been strengthened to give this trilogy a grand ending.I am rating the movie high because I love Liam Neeson.
This movie although packed with action, fights and shooting, is a little worse than the last, which was already worse than the first.I like Liam Neeson as an action actor because he is a little different than the usual suspects, but I hope Luc Besson doesn't make this another Transporter.
I had a lot of expectations regarding this movie but I was a little disappointed but the story which tends to be predictable.Forest Whitaker is always a good addition to the group, making it a little better, but even he – the ever suspicious FBI detective, tend to just follow Liam's character as he moves the script around.It is a good action movie but don't get your hopes up.
It was only recently that I got into the Bryan Mills and his family troubles by watching the first two Taken movies near the end of last year.
This time story(plot) is even a let down from Taken 2 but fun is there.Overall cast was good but repetition of story makes it a bit predictable and dull.
Addition of Forest Whitaker was good n he did a fine job.Every actor did a fine job but wish some characters would have been better written.IMO They should end the trilogy here unless they can work some magic.IF you are a fan of Neeson or Action flicks you might like it.
He's framed for her murder and Mills must hunt for the real killer and keep his daughter from being taken again, while being hunted himself by the LAPD lead by Forest Whitaker.As the hunt happens we get to know Mills just a little bit more just like a good sequel should.It's action packed, and it's about watching him work as a seasoned spy with his team of friends that have made appearances in the other films.
Liam Neeson returns as Brian Mills, the retired CIA agent, in this, the third of the Taken movies.
Lots of fast cuts which made the action difficult to follow but the sequences were prolonged and Taken 3 is much better than its predecessor and equally as good as the first Taken film.
I don't care what the critics are saying, the only reason they are writing negative reports is:A) They know that no one really listens to the positive reports, just the negatives.B) Are truly unhappy people who have nothing better to do.C) Watched a totally different movie than what I saw.D) Don't like action and excitement.
Well I enjoyed it, but it's not really a Taken movie now is it?OK, so it has the same cast (excluding Lenore's husband Stuart who is updated with Dougray Scott) which is a saving grace as I think the characters are all quite interesting but that's about it.This is a weird mix of several different movies and removed from the Taken series would probably have received better reviews but everyone thinks back to the brutality of the first movie and in comparison this is a bit like what Justin Bieber is to Black Sabbath - chalk and cheese.The most noticeable thing you'll find is that it takes our man Bryan bloody ages to "work his magic" as he's pegging it from the cops which is fine but while he's not bumping them off the population if Europe is just getting bigger...
Luckily the last 30-40 minutes make up for it but even then it's very diluted (how does a near naked man get shot at very close range twice and despite bullet holes there's no perceivable blood?).So in the context of a Taken movie it's a bit weak but as a thriller it's worth a watch :)If they do make a Taken 4 lets hope they go back to being bad ass mofo with painful to watch action sequences and maybe get his old team in on the action a bit too as they're just too cool to spend their time in the background!.
Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) lets people know that he's not ready to step out of action movie scene just quite yet.
I was very much entertained, the hard Bryan Mills played by Liam Neeson delivers a good performance, this time it is himself that gets into trouble and not his ex wife or daughter, it actually works out quit well.A nicely done Action movie, with a very typical high speed in all the scenes where somebody is being chased either on foot or in a car.
I really liked the first Taken movie, it's an intense enjoyable action thriller, Liam Neeson was awesome, it's a classic to be watched for years.
Now the sequel nobody asked for titled Taken 2 not so much, everything that was good with the first film, was not in the sequel, Liam Neeson was alright, but action had too much close ups, and also too much shaky cam.
Taken(1) was a really good movie and different than most others in this action framework.
A good follow-up to the Taken Story and a excellent action film.
Expecting to see the final showdown between the ex CIA operative and a ruthless group of criminals from eastern Europe who had every reason to attempt a third time to destroy him and his wife and daughter.But instead all i saw was a pathetic attempt at a change in plot as if we were watching another movie altogether.The acting in some scenes was shallow and the film was very predicable after you had realized what the main plot was.Forest Whittaker's character as the clever detective came across as a bit too clever with some shallow one liners and lack of character development considering the plot completely changed for the film any way.
It's poorly told action scenes are a real disappointment, after all what do you watch a Taken movie for!
This is a great action-packed crime-thriller film and I totally loved how Neeson's performance featured his unique brand of justice to find the bad guys and protect his daughter.
While it's still pretty fun to watch Neeson doing the best he could do as an action hero, the movie somehow lost the senses of this character.
From director Olivier Megaton (COLOMBIANA, TAKEN 2) and writer-producer Luc Besson (LEON, THE FIFTH ELEMENT) comes the conclusion to the trilogy about Bryan Mills (a rather tired-looking Liam Neeson), a man with "a particular set of skills." As such we get a movie in which...nobody is taken and Mills shows off his other, not-so-bad-ass skills like detective work and illegally downloading police files onto USB drives.
It also doesn't help that the film is slackly paced.Acting-wise, nobody was really good and even Liam Neeson looked like he was pretty bored this time around.
he is is back in third time as Bryan Mills Taken (2008) Bryan Daughter is taken Taken 2(2012) his wife gets Taken there wasn't no point for sequel but still like it for the story and for Liam Nesson but wasn't big fan of it i find First Taken More Entering more then another 2 Taken movies.
I DON'T WANT TO Ruin the movie who ever is reading this but you have watch the movie to find out who did it Byran find's her dead police thinking that Byran killed his wife (Famke Janssen)Lenore St.John,but Byran didn't do it he kicked away these cops in a** witch is very awesome Action little bit better then Taken 2 Reminds Me Of watching movie Harrison Ford The Fugitive saying i didn't kill my wife but in movie it reminds me that director Oliver Megaton copyed movie to this i am NOT saying it's rip off this is like Mills brings out his particular set of skills to find the true killer and clear his name until he gets his life back fights until he gets he's killer.
Where no one gets taken Except the audience's good will and money.Liam Neeson rocks!
but in Taken 3 is more of fast finale last movie in franchise with better Action scenes it's fun movie to watch 7.10 Taken 2 is good 6.10 Taken first 10.10 i mean back then i never expect sequels of Taken to be franchise i mean like i give taken 2 and taken 3 a bit of low rating of movie i don't hate it thought there was no point of sequel but Oliver wants to make a story of it i was thinking the samething over again same movie with same story that your already going to notice it but i had no problem enjoying this movie I want to say one thing..
It was a straight up action movie and for the most part it was a good film.
Basically, I found it to be a good, enjoyable action movie – so there were no Albanians, and no-one was taken – so what ???
Apart from Neeson in the same role you have seen 100 times and Maggie Grace doing the same thing as in the last two films; everyone else in this cast seemed very uninteresting and just looked like they were portraying parodies of the real characters.